WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN BIOLOGY LESSONS

Abstract

The ability to solve problems is a most important general cross-curricular competence that a student needs to acquire in order to complete compulsory primary education in the world. This competence implies that the student is competent to engage his/her individual capacities (knowledge in different subjects, experience gained outside the school, as well as intellectual, emotional, and social abilities) and other resources at his/her disposal (various sources of information, tools, books, experiences of other students, teachers, and other persons from school and out-of-school environment, etc.), selectively and purposefully uses them, persists in solving problems, and finds an effective solution to the defined problem situations that occur in the course of learning. According to the literature, Project Based Learning is considered to be one of the teaching methods that contributes to the achievement of this competence. Project Based Learning is a problem solving method that introduces students to the processes of researching, finding and concluding, as well as keeping records of what has been done. The project should integrate and connect the contents of different subjects, connecting knowledge gained by the student through his/her own experience at the same time. Project Based Learning is an innovative model that changes the role of teachers and students. The teacher is the coordinator who encourages and directs the teaching process, while the students are the main stakeholders in the activity. All these are the reasons why Project Based Learning is a stimulating challenge for teachers, which requires their great expertise and responsibility.