Question: What are your top three insights about how young people learn — the insights you’re most passionate about bringing to life in your school?
Idea Tree has identified three significant insights about how young people learn: hands-on, project-based learning, and authentic assessment.
There are countless adages illustrating that we learn best by doing and current research validates this belief. In the same way that the adolescent brain is changing, research is changing what we know about our students and how they can best learn. If we are not challenging students, they are less engaged and we are not taking advantage of their current brain function potential. The hands-on challenges at Idea Tree will have our students taking risks, building relationships, and developing themselves alongside community partners.
Research now shows students who receive instruction in some kind of project-based learning environment outperform students who receive traditional instruction. Project-based learning has the potential to develop students’ skills in collaboration, problem-solving, and decision-making — all of which are essential in creating productive citizens and employees. Students need stimulating activities that will promote collaboration and allow instructors to demonstrate the same thinking and problem-solving strategies we want our students to learn. Our challenges will do more than develop competencies in our students; they will help shape our students into young adults.
Too often, the work that students do is irrelevant outside the confines of the school walls. Many students do not understand they are (or should be) developing life skills. Idea Tree will bridge the gap that often exists between academic tasks and life tasks by having authentic assessments. Every challenge is an assessment on whether or not students can collaborate to solve a local problem in our community. Our students will have the chance to learn and develop in a supportive environment where they can see a relevant connection to our global (and local) community.
Idea Tree has identified three significant insights about how young people learn: hands-on, project-based learning, and authentic assessment.
There are countless adages illustrating that we learn best by doing and current research validates this belief. In the same way that the adolescent brain is changing, research is changing what we know about our students and how they can best learn. If we are not challenging students, they are less engaged and we are not taking advantage of their current brain function potential. The hands-on challenges at Idea Tree will have our students taking risks, building relationships, and developing themselves alongside community partners.
Research now shows students who receive instruction in some kind of project-based learning environment outperform students who receive traditional instruction. Project-based learning has the potential to develop students’ skills in collaboration, problem-solving, and decision-making — all of which are essential in creating productive citizens and employees. Students need stimulating activities that will promote collaboration and allow instructors to demonstrate the same thinking and problem-solving strategies we want our students to learn. Our challenges will do more than develop competencies in our students; they will help shape our students into young adults.
Too often, the work that students do is irrelevant outside the confines of the school walls. Many students do not understand they are (or should be) developing life skills. Idea Tree will bridge the gap that often exists between academic tasks and life tasks by having authentic assessments. Every challenge is an assessment on whether or not students can collaborate to solve a local problem in our community. Our students will have the chance to learn and develop in a supportive environment where they can see a relevant connection to our global (and local) community.
KQED Article: What Growth Mindset Teaches Us About Our Brains
Bertolini, A. (2012, February 23). How We Learn - Synapses and Neural Pathways. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4np5wLAhWw.
