Through project-based learning (PBL), students can sharpen their critical thinking skills, practice and enhance their English, and take part in meaningful, contextualized learning. Here is a sample of a project conducted during Covid-19 while theteaching learning mode was online. This paper was presented at the University of Kent in a digitally enhanced webinar in February 2022.
Please check out the presentation detail on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_tU-nzVKKA
1. KRISHNA KUMARI UPADHAYAYA, PHD. 2ND SEMESTER
KATHMANDU UNIVERSITY, SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, NEPAL
How can we best engage
our students in 2021/22
(Online PBL in ELT)
2.
3. My Background:
I started teaching children after my high school.
In the beginning, I taught quite a lot of subjects for primary kids.
I am purely an English language teacher these days up to tertiary level and
a trainer.
My major achievements include my new teaching methods and few books
that I have published.
I am interested in innovative school curriculum.
7. Covid 19 and It’s Impact on Education
The internet had been used for Googling, Tick Tocking,
Facebooking, Twitting, and Insta posting until 2019.
Nepal government declared online classes countrywide
in March, 2020
Now, Fcaebookers, Tick Tockers had to get into learning.
Schools embraced online mode with whatever and
however.
8. What Happened Next?
Did the students enjoy the learning
process?
In the beginning, they loved seeing
each other on the video.
Later, they started keeping their
video off and mic muted.
The exam results revealed, the
students’ achievement level was
highly waned.
9. My Story:
- I organized a case study with the students of
class IX and X (64 students)
- The report exposed:
- The students didn’t like the lectured method.
- They were demotivated by the negative humiliating
comments of their teachers.
- They didn’t like their English teacher.
10. Online Project Based Learning
- Student-centric, autonomous, collaborative approach.
- The learning process through virtual platform.
- Use of devices: tablet, laptop, mobile, desktop
computer etc.
- Time bound activities
- Learners acquire knowledge through experience and
engagement (Mezirow, 1991)
11. Stages in PBL Method (Students)
- Topic Selection
- Investigation
- Data Collection
- Synthesis
- Presentation
12. Teacher’s Role in PBL
- Design plan
- Align to standards
- Build the culture
- Manage activities
- Scaffold students’ learning
- Engage and coach
14. Research Method: Narrative Inquiry
- The participants told their story.
- The series of actions in chronological order.
- I collected the stories from individuals and groups.
- Stories emerged from individual experience.
- Data collection through interview and observation.
15. Students’ Response
What I liked about this method is story development during video making.
My experience about this project is that I was not afraid of delivering speech
in front of the class.
My favorite part of the project is we didn’t have the teacher with us all the
time, still, we were helping each other and trying our best to have our
project done as perfectly as we could.
I think, I loved the freedom we had during the time of project work.
The best part of the project is our teacher’s motivational praise which
helped boost our self-confidence.
We later realized that, we had been engaged to a creative task which
enhanced our critical thinking.
I think online learning should be activity based like this, otherwise our
friends turn off their video and play mobile games.
17. What’s New?
We have various learning platforms which are project based
What happened in August??
Students were allocated tasks for reading.
They were given requirements of reading.
They were given time line for the presentation.
The presentation requirement was a video format.
Requirement for the video making: Students’ dress up, gesture, speed of reading, neutrality.
Reading models : 1. Senior: story reading, news reading, biography reading
(English Teacher)
2. Junior: Stories, My favorite toy, My family, My favorite cartoon etc.
(English Teacher)
19. The Projects in Hand:
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Poem Recitation
Handwriting
Talent Shows
We make these happen
through positive
reinforcement
20. Also:
Making a Monthly Scrapbook
Writing Fictional Letters to Their
Ideal Person
Organizing Virtual Interviews
Making Abstract Videos
Diary Writing
# For speaking and writing
We are hopeful that
things will get
better every day.
21. Findings
The students developed motivation toward learning.
They developed self-esteem .
Their fear to speaking was overcome.
Teacher’s attitude toward teaching was changed.
Both the teacher and the students went through creative and innovative
stages.
The classroom was democratic which helped in equal participation of all
students. etc. etc.
Students went through their own ideas, opinions, self-presentation and
experiences which led them to self-realization.
The teacher no more was a disgusting creature for the students.
22. Where Am I at This Point?
Involving students in Online PBL.
Thinking about new tools for classroom activities rather than
instructions from Zoom, MS Teams, Google Meet etc. I am working
on the project of exploring other online platforms for students.
o Microsoft forms
o Google Docs
o PowerPoint Presentation development by students
o Game applications
o YouTube, Padlet, Online Stopwatch, NoHands App etc.
