project based learning ideas Archives

Revving Up the Car Making Adventure!

August 25, 2023September 8, 2023By Digital Rhetoric

Tapas Education, found at https://tapaseducation.com/, is an educational institution dedicated to fostering innovation and experiential learning. With a profound commitment to innovative projects, Tapas Education provides students with hands-on opportunities to explore cutting-edge concepts and technologies. Through a dynamic curriculum and real-world applications, Tapas Education empowers students to become forward-thinking problem solvers, preparing them for a future where creativity and innovation are paramount. Explore Tapas Education’s initiatives and witness the transformative power of education that extends beyond the classroom.

The Car-making Project at Tapas Education represents the epitome of classroom learning applied to real-world challenges. It offers students the chance to bridge theory and practice, transforming textbook knowledge into tangible solutions. By designing and building cars, students gain invaluable insights into sustainable transportation technology, problem-solving, and teamwork. This hands-on experience equips them with practical skills that extend far beyond the classroom, preparing them for careers in the ever-evolving field of hybrid and electric vehicles. The Car-making Project exemplifies how education at Tapas Education goes beyond theoretical understanding, empowering students to make a meaningful impact in the world.

THE PURPOSE

The educational goals and objectives behind initiating the Car-making Project encompass a comprehensive understanding of various scientific concepts while fostering critical skills in students:

Forces and Motion:

Pushes and Pulls: To introduce students to fundamental concepts of forces and motion, emphasizing how these principles apply in real-world scenarios.
Exploring How Toys Work: Encouraging hands-on exploration of how toys utilize forces for movement and operation.
Observing Forces Around Us: Identifying and comprehending the role of forces in everyday life, from simple actions to complex mechanisms.
Changing Movement: Understanding how forces can alter the trajectory and characteristics of motion.
Utilizing Forcemeters: Developing skills in measuring forces and quantifying their impact.
Friction: Gaining insights into the concept of friction and how it influences motion.
Magnetic Materials: Exploring the relationship between magnetism and motion.
Gravity: Understanding the fundamental force of gravity and its effects on objects.

Electricity:

Understanding Electricity: Introducing students to the basics of electricity, its presence in our surroundings, and its safety considerations.
Creating Circuits: Encouraging students to design and construct circuits, fostering a practical understanding of electrical flow.
Using Motors and Buzzers: Applying electrical principles to create functional devices like motors and buzzers.
Switches: Teaching the significance of switches in controlling the flow of electricity.
Safety Awareness: Promoting a sense of responsibility and safety when dealing with electrical components.

By integrating these objectives into the Car-making Project, students not only gain a multidisciplinary understanding of science but also develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and practical skills essential for their educational and personal growth.

Project Flow:

The educational project at Tapas Education follows a structured and engaging flow to empower children with hands-on learning experiences that foster their understanding of forces and motion while promoting sustainability through recycling. Here’s a breakdown of the project’s key steps:

Recycled Car Creation (Hands-On):
Children kick off the project by creating their own miniature cars using recycled materials commonly found at home, such as plastic bottles and tissue paper rolls.
This hands-on activity encourages creativity and resourcefulness, instilling the importance of sustainability from the outset.

Questioning and Exploration:

The project prompts children to think critically about what will propel their homemade cars.
They explore the concept of forces and are encouraged to identify one of the fundamental forces (e.g., push, pull, or gravity) that can be harnessed to set their cars in motion.
Children also learn about the control parameters required to effectively utilize a specific force.

Mini Lessons and Practical Application:

Through mini-lessons and interactive projects, children delve deeper into the understanding of various forces, including friction, magnetism, and more.
These lessons provide a theoretical foundation, ensuring that children grasp the principles behind force and motion.

Application to Car Building:

Armed with their newfound knowledge, children apply what they’ve learned about forces to their homemade cars.
They design and modify their cars, incorporating the control parameters learned earlier, to optimize their vehicles for motion.

Testing and Analysis:

The culmination of the project involves testing the functionality of the recycled cars.
Children experiment with different forces, applying them to their cars and observing the results.
They collect data and analyze the performance of each force application to draw conclusions.

Outcome:

Through this project, children gain a multifaceted learning experience that combines creativity, critical thinking, and scientific principles. They not only acquire a deeper understanding of forces but also develop an appreciation for recycling and sustainable practices. By comparing results and making informed decisions about which force best propels their cars, they apply their newfound knowledge in a practical context.

Table: Comparison of Forces Applied to Recycled Cars

FORCE TYPE	PERFORMANCE EVALUATION	CONCLUSION
Push
Pull
Gravity
Friction
Magnetism
Elasticity

In the table, children record their observations and evaluations for each force type applied to their cars, ultimately arriving at a conclusion about the most effective force for propelling their recycled vehicles. This project not only enhances their scientific knowledge but also fosters critical thinking and environmental consciousness.

In conclusion….

The Car-making Project at Tapas Education offers a dynamic and engaging learning experience for children. Through hands-on creation, critical thinking, and practical application of scientific concepts, students are not only building recycled cars but also expanding their understanding of forces and motion. The project encourages sustainability and resourcefulness from the very start.

As part of this educational journey, children have been prompted to explore the forces that drive motion and apply this knowledge to their homemade cars. Mini lessons and interactive projects have enriched their theoretical foundation, and they’ve harnessed this understanding to optimize their vehicle designs. The testing and analysis phase empowers them to make informed decisions about which force best suits their cars.

The next step for the young scientists is to finalize their findings and submit their reports. We invite you to explore their discoveries and insights in greater detail on our website: Tapas Education – Car-making Project. By doing so, you’ll not only witness the fruits of their labor but also support their educational journey.

Join us in celebrating the innovation, creativity, and environmental consciousness of these young minds. Let’s inspire the scientists of tomorrow to drive positive change today. Visit our website now and be a part of their journey!

Ten Statements About the Future of Project-Based Learning

January 20, 2023January 27, 2023By Digital Rhetoric

Educational opportunities are paramount when it comes to future-proofing the next generation.

Students’ ability to think critically and solve problems is emphasized in project-based learning activities. Its inquiry-based approach to teaching students how to tackle the challenges assigned as projects is a kind of active learning. Project-based learning “integrates knowing and doing” when students use what they have learned to address real-world issues to produce impactful outcomes.

project-based learning activities

Projects need a defined scope of work, available resources, and careful planning to be carried out and managed successfully. Through authentic projects, students are better equipped to tackle the complex difficulties in today’s society.Let’s take a deeper look at the future of project-based learning by reading the ten related statements!

1. Scope Of Work

The major purpose of project-based learning ideas is to help teachers, students, and educators understand and adapt project frameworks. Under the direction of their supervisors or teachers, students learn to understand the full extent of the project and organize the execution into a framework.

2. Real World Problem Simulation

Project-based learning schools in Bangalore are centered on allowing students to deal with circumstances from the real world that are simulated in projects like at Tapas School. Students construct new learning around their passions, hobbies, and ambitions while learning by practicing what they already know. They often discover new interests, passions, and preferences for occupations.

3. Concept And Creativity Development

Through project-based learning, students’ conceptual knowledge and levels of creativity are enhanced. The project’s real-world scenarios are better equipped to grab students’ interest and hold their attention to elicit the thought required to apply new information in a problem-solving context.

Also read: What Are the Five Components of Project-Based Learning?

4. Improves The Interpersonal Skills Of A Student

It dramatically impacts how well the student’s interpersonal skills are developed. We can see a clear vision of project-based learning’s future and how students at Tapas School, a project learning-based provider in Bangalore, develop their communication skills throughout the whole process or at crucial points in the project to work with diverse stakeholders.

5. It’s Fun!

Nobody ever said that a course of study or the act of learning itself had to be boring, although many traditional models often are. With the help of projects, students develop an emotional investment in the subject matter, which makes their education more meaningful and purposeful. Just like one of our masterclasses, the Indo-Jazz Fusion Music, where the students got to interact with renowned musicians and learn about different cultures and how music plays an important role in cultures in a fun manner!

6. Choice Of Selecting Real-World Problems

The fact that projects are selected by the students or given by the professors depending on the student’s interests is another excellent argument for choosing project-based learning. In this project, students can pick a real-world issue that interests them and work on solving it. Projects selected based on interests allow students to solve problems in a variety of ways, even within the same class.

7. New Style Assessment Of Students’ Skills

Teachers can determine which activities most interest their students by gauging their opportunity to perceive, analyze, and explore and then assigning those projects accordingly. Students can improve their ability to observe and analyze. When students engage in project-based learning activities, teachers can observe and evaluate how their students’ skill levels evolve.

8. Direct Demonstration Of The Capability

As opposed to the essays and tests of traditional educational learning, in which students are expected to memorize and write about what their teachers have taught them, projects provide teachers with a far more open and flexible framework to evaluate their students’ talents and progress. Undoubtedly, project-based learning will play an important role in future classrooms!

9. Formative VS Summative

Through formative assessments, we assist students in recognizing their areas of strength, improvement, and weaknesses. Students will hone their abilities to self-regulate, allowing them to take a more systematic approach to their education. At the same time, summative assessments are used to evaluate student learning after a unit of learning by comparing it to a standard or benchmark.
For example, we use S.T.E.A.M. activities as a formative assessment since we know they will help students succeed on the project. Students’ workloads are lightened as they get valuable feedback to help them grow!

10. End-To-End Problem-Solving Skills

The phases of project-based learning ideas include project scoping, organizing, activity executing and tracking, handling uncertainties provided during problem-solving activities, showcasing the project, and closure. Talking about the end-to-end problem-solving method of project-based learning, students can acquire abilities in many things. For instance, observing, researching, reporting, presentation, cooperation with individuals engaged, team building, and leadership.
Like the tiny house creation project where students were required to build a cardboard paper floor plan using their creativity, at Tapas, these projects trigger their minds by making them think critically and develop problem-solving skills.

Final Word

There’s a bright future for project-based learning in the education system in India. The kids are encouraged to seek answers independently, enhancing their knowledge of the topic. In this way, students can gain confidence in their abilities and expertise in areas that particularly interest them. For children, education should be an adventure into a fascinating world of knowledge they look forward to exploring! Here at Tapas School, a project-based learning provider in Bangalore, we firmly believe in the value of project-based learning and the bright future it promises our students.

What are the key ideas of project-based learning?

December 20, 2022January 27, 2023By Digital Rhetoric

Project-based learning (PBL) is a classroom paradise for some teachers.20 Students collaborate to study complex and real-world issues. As a result, they develop abilities that are in line with the curriculum. They receive improved communication and problem-solving abilities as compensation.

However, setting up and managing an appropriate project-based learning curriculum isn’t always simple because the methodology is surrounded by controversy and manifests itself in a variety of tasks.

Find the best project-based learning ideas for your students and facilitate them. Learn more by reading on!

What Exactly Is Project-Based Learning?

PBL activities

With the help of a long-term investigation and solution to a complex, interesting, and authentic issue, problem, or issue, students learn through the use of project-based learning.

Students work on a project for a long time—from one week to a semester—that requires them to address a challenging subject or solve a real-world problem. By producing a public product or presentation for a live audience, they showcase their expertise and abilities.

Students gain strong content understanding as well as critical thinking, teamwork, creativity, and communication abilities as a result. Students and teachers are given the opportunity to express their creativity through project-based learning.

Why Is Project-Based Learning So Important?

Project-based learning enhances classroom engagement while also having a significant impact on how well students are ready to enter the industry once they graduate.

A greater focus on 21st-century abilities and critical thinking implies that project-based learning is picking up steam in education. In fact, PBL can help educators:

Teach students self-responsibility and crucial time management skills
Create assignments that touch higher-order stages in Bloom’s typology, like analysis, synthesis, and assessment
Provide several ways of grading students at different phases of the project, whether using a portfolio, highlighted bibliography, overview, draft product, or final project.

Once students leave school, they’ll have to recognize that the job isn’t as clear as lecturing and homework. It’s more linked with a project-based method, where employees are required to focus, manage their schedules and deliver work on a deadline.

What Are The Key Ideas Of Project-Based Learning?

Project-based learning incorporates a number of key ideas, including the following:

Learning And Thinking

The purpose of the project is to encourage thought about the desired standards, topics, and abilities that students need to know.

In the process of preparing for the design of the project, what kinds of thinking and learning do we wish to connect our teaching with? It is possible that this will not be the case with some projects, despite the fact that this clearly can be focused on quality and standards and that this is actually the case the majority of the time.

In fact, there is a very strong argument that can be made for a very good balance between information and skills, as well as possibly concentrating on thought in order to absorb content in a more in-depth manner. However, the main focus should be on the fact that the teacher or facilitator makes a conscious effort to plan for the thinking and learning—regardless of what it may be—that the students will need to be familiar with and be able to demonstrate an understanding of in order to successfully complete the project and the challenge.

Great Inquiry

The project offers various chances and necessitates a high degree of inquiry from both the instructor and the students. Excellent facilitators and teachers arrange for settings from which great questions can develop from all of the participants in the class, while good ones plan for fantastic questions to ask the students. Throughout the entirety of a project, we want to make sure that there are chances for students and teachers to ask questions, as well as a requirement for them to do so.

Beginning with an open-ended Driving Question that is aligned with the preferred thinking and learning, students may have questions for an outside expert, questionnaires for fellow students centered on a text or other resources, questions to actually guide the thinking of others, or questions that are simply intended to clarify something.

Great inquiry, as opposed to the more traditional classroom setting in which solutions are provided, fosters profound thought and creativity by building one idea atop another.

Assessment That Is Meaningful

Teaching and learning are directed by the project through the use of intentional summative and formative assessments.

If you ask the majority of students how they feel about assessment, you will probably get an answer that is less than positive; however, this does not necessarily have to be the case. It can be thrilling to use evaluation as a tool to identify the next steps and desired areas of growth, particularly when the activity being assessed is genuine, relevant, and performed for a specific reason.

Assessments that are meaningful can take numerous forms, including official and informal ones, and may even take the form of questions rather than merely providing answers. It is also possible for it to arise from numerous sources, such as the individual themselves, their peers, experts from the outside, and of course, their teachers.

Conclusion

You should have a better understanding of project-based learning after reading this. One of the top project-based learning schools in Bangalore is Tapas, which guarantees greater involvement and engagement with a curriculum that promotes higher-order thinking and problem-solving abilities.

Just keep in mind that the focus of teaching must be on the students. It’s possible that what works for other teachers won’t work for you.

But unless you try, you’ll never know.

An Introduction To The Concept Of Project Based Teaching And How It Is Used In Classroom Management

August 24, 2022November 25, 2022By admin

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “Project-based learning”? Learning through doing, right? Well, yes you are partially correct. PBL or Project Based Learning is way more than that though as it involves a teaching method where children solve real-life problems within the stipulated time. This encourages engagement in the children and the lessons become more meaningful when the child is actively involved.

Children showcase natural curiosity and are inherently investigative by nature. If you spin an intriguing, authentic and engaging real-world problem, they are bound to give in to their intrinsic individualism and you will be rewarded with focused attention. That is one big part of your job as one of the biggest worries with the new-age world today is the lack of attention span and focus on detail.

PBL empowers students to develop patience and sustenance as well as these projects can take up anywhere between a week to an entire semester to solve an issue. This is rewarded with a demonstration of their project’s outcome in front of a live audience who will definitely laud the outcome and the efforts put in by the students with some help from their educators.

Experiences have always given way to knowledge. PBL has been known to help promote content skills and knowledge in depth. These create strong bonds with peers and fulfilling relationships with mentors as it tends to unleash the four Cs within the students.

Creative Energy: Creative energies when synergised strengthen interpersonal relationships and lend credibility to open-mindedness.

Critical Thinking: Creative thinking skills have the ability to look at a problem from several perspectives, using tried and tested methods to reveal a multitude of new possibilities.

Collaboration: Working together, the students can come up with useful, practical solutions even if rather unusual which is leading the way for new-age ideas and consequent methodology.
Communication: This plays an important role in generating new ideas and ways of working together and is a very crucial skill to develop and hone and this is obtained from learning activities together.

The difference between Project-based learning and “Doing a Project”

There are various kinds of learning that are now being used widely in educational settings. Schools have always practiced simpler forms of project-based learning keeping them to a bare minimum because they hadn’t gained the popularity that it has in recent years. While there are grey areas in the terminology “Project-based Learning” for parents, by and large, it is imperative that one understands the key characteristics that make PBL different from doing projects at school. PBL is a rigorous way of learning by doing projects rather than solving them through textbook knowledge only. Students need to distinguish between knowledge and skills and PBL is known to be the vehicle for teaching that.

PROJECT BASED LEARNING IDEAS

Intrinsically, the parameters, definitions and methods of PBL may vary from school to school, but the essence remains the same more or less. Interchangeable with “Experience learning” or “ Discovery learning”, the fundamentals are the same in PBL. Essentially, there are seven unique models to follow this method.

Open-ended questions – Posing a problem or a challenge for the students and making them solve it with a big emphasis on focus, research and responsiveness.

Academics – Interweaving textbook knowledge so that the subject matter is known, understood, and a student is able to do it academically.

Curiosity – Generating questions and making the students use their thinking skills to seek answers, coupled with inquiry-based learning which triggers elemental inquisitiveness.

21st Century skills – Critical thinking, collaboration, creativity and communication.

Alternate Processes – Understanding the students’ choices and trying to fit in processes that keep them interested.

Feedback – As in real-life scenarios, students are given a chance at revising their outcomes with the right constructive criticism. Also, providing opportunities to scrutinise and revamp the project at hand gives students various skill sets as well as an opportunity to put on the critical thinking capabilities to use repeatedly.
Peer review – Just as in real-world projects, students are given opportunities to pose their problems, research methods and results in front of others which has been recorded to be a confidence-building tool.

THE PBL OBJECTIVES

Combination of knowledge and skills from diverse fields through complicated reviews and several regimental projects.
Self-governed learning is determined through self-reliant research of unregulated roadblocks.
Partnerships and teamwork, help formulate students to be in a social environment.
Self-assessments and self-appraisals, inspire students to see ahead of their own intellectual judgment and expertise.

PROJECT BASED LEARNING PROGRAMS

Project Based Learning Programs Each project is looked at minutely and in convergence with the student mix and their interests, behaviours and attention levels to bring about the maximum result. There are many different types of programs and curriculums that PBL follows. At the beginning of the semester, the educator sets the goals that they need to target, focus on and achieve cumulatively. Changes that concentrate on growth, however small they may be, but well-orchestrated are made and these bring about a flurry of change in the classroom in the correct manner.

PBL can be implemented in various ways in the classroom based on the varied subjects in the curriculum. Tapas, a progressive educational institution, and a project based learning provider in Bangalore has a teaching framework that involves the students in real-world situations with a learning curve. This brings about a real intrigue and deeper knowledge and understanding of concepts through experiences that are relevant and authentic.

Some examples are:

PBL in Environmental Science: This is done in various ways such as visiting a zoo to see the animals in their natural habitat or fostering an animal and providing for it collectively. Collaboration and research are the big themes here which start with teamwork and end with presentations.
PBL in the English Language: Learning language in action is the theme here where the students are encouraged to ask various questions and also to read one book that has prominence and relevance to their age group. Not only is vocabulary and grammar focussed on, but other aspects of language acquisition are looked at. So, this approach benefits the students as they are made to write their own persuasive texts as well as apply the knowledge of the language in real-time scenarios. This speeds up the acquisition of the language.
PBL in Maths: The inquisitive nature of children is used to its full potential with them using strategies such as coding for a real-life example situation which can be decoding a certain important document that has numbers and can potentially be dangerous to a given situation if not solved within a timeframe. Or comparisons to real life with geometry using angles, sums and diagrams making learning not only theoretical but practical and absolutely necessary. Professionals from different fields that can bring in new angles to the subject are also brought in.

Conclusion

At Tapas progressive educational institution, Preethi, one of the founders, elaborates on how they want to bring about a change using a traditional curriculum but new methods of teaching that are hands-on and informative in a practical manner.

They have designed the premises keeping every single detail in mind as to where they can conduct what different subjects as the change of classroom also is a change in energy which is suitable for learning. Project-based learning is the way the new-age world is going and every child should benefit from it.

Benefits of Project-Based Learning

August 12, 2022August 17, 2022By admin

The best schools are the ones that prepare students for life- work, interpersonal relationships, leadership, emotional and physical well-being. Today’s students will most probably have careers where they will be involved in multiple projects. So, it is rather important to design the curriculum in a way that prepares students for projects.

There are multiple benefits of an educational curriculum that you can find in project-based learning programs. Let’s look at a few:

Engagement and interaction with content are much better and deeper for students as they get a more immersive experience in a project-based learning environment.
Project-based Learning activities often happen in a team or include an element of presentation, encouraging students to work on their communication skills, team building and leadership skills, public speaking and confidence, and other social skills.
An often overlooked benefit is that students learn to build a professional connection with their peers, mentors, and audience from the start making it a much easier task later in their professional life.
Since students are an active part in designing their projects and learning outcomes, the sense of autonomy and responsibility develops faster and deeper. It also ensures that students know how to design their learning throughout their life for upskilling or re-skilling at any point in their life.
Some important signs of emotional maturity and well-being are the capability to resolve conflicts, active listening and understanding, empathy, and desire to do better. When students participate in project-based learning ideas, especially group projects, they have a higher chance of developing these necessary skills for a healthy and well-balanced emotional life.
This learning method encourages curiosity in students, they take action, find results on their own or fail and try again. This whole process of encouraging exploration and learning from mistakes empowers them to take and create better opportunities in future.
Parents often worry about their kids’ assessments and results. When the assessment is done on a project, the teacher/facilitator gets multiple assessment points, aspects and a better understanding of the student as a person. The assessment in project-based learning programs is holistic and much deeper than traditional exams.
Learning through projects as a method is very conscious and inclusive of different learning styles and needs of the students, making it a better learning experience all over.

Education should not be limited to the four walls of classrooms and as educators, it is our responsibility to create adults who are equipped with skills and resources to thrive in a constantly changing work environment, who are able to live a fulfilling life and be active contributors to society. Tapas, a 100% project-based learning school in South Bangalore, brings that vision to life.

What are the features of progressive education?

June 28, 2022July 4, 2022By admin

The term “progressive education” is used to describe an educational philosophy that emphasises critical thinking skills, experiential learning, and social responsibility. Some schools have adopted this type of education in order to provide students with a more hands-on approach to learning. Progressive educators believe that students should be given the opportunity to explore their own interests and find their passions, rather than being limited by what the school has deemed appropriate for them. Progressive Education focuses on children’s social, emotional, and intellectual development. It is also known as child-centered education.

The term progressive education was coined by John Dewey in education reform. The progressive pedagogy was a significant part of Dewey’s philosophy. In his time, educators considered the progressive approach to be a type of education that would have broader social and political implications. Progressive education is opposed to traditional education in which children are expected to memorize knowledge, whereas progressive education advocates educational experiences that allow children to think critically and learn by using what they have learned in different settings. Progressive educators believe that the method of teaching should be based on the needs and interests of each individual student. In today’s society, education is sometimes criticized as being a tool for social advancement. Low-income students are often put into classes before they are prepared for them, and their grades suffer as a result.

Progressive education means different things to different people, but most progressive educators agree that it involves providing children with opportunities to learn through exploration, experimentation, and other activities that are engaging and interactive. Progression is also based on the idea that children learn best with questions, not answers.

Tapas School is an example of a Progressive Educational Institution in Bangalore.

What are some of the main benefits of studying in a progressive educational institution?
The benefits of progressive education are that it provides a more interactive and less rigid environment for the students. The students are encouraged to explore their surroundings in order to learn about themselves, the world around them, and what they can do in it. Students are more holistically trained to take on the problems of tomorrow. Progressive Education makes your child’s education future proof.

What are some of the key features of Progressive Education?

a) In progressive education, teachers serve as facilitators or guides. Lectures are replaced by active collaborative learning. In progressive education classrooms, students have a say in the pace and style of learning, unlike in traditional classrooms.
b) Progressive education is student-centered. This leads progressive education curriculums to be interest-based, which encourages learning way more than traditional grade-based systems.
c) Students learn topics by undertaking the practical applications of theoretical concepts. Such hands-on investigative learning builds up a natural curiosity amongst children, which serves them well throughout their lives.
d) Progressive education encourages collaborative learning, thus leading to more empathetic students.
e) Practically doing things helps students find creative ways to solve problems. This also enhances critical thinking skills amongst students.

Tapas is a progressive learning institution in Bangalore that engages students in project-based learning programs. They follow a project-based learning structure to teach the students. This new methodology has been met with a lot of enthusiastic reception from educators and parents alike. Progressive Education Institutions are the future of the education ecosystem and Tapas is learning the way in Bangalore, India.

project based learning ideas