INTRODUCTION: Learning has always remained monotonous activity for children. Our old process of teaching and learning was such that there was no interaction between the teacher and the student; due to which the learning process was always one-sided and passive. But, with the passage of time, educationists and research scholars have considered and addressed this issue with seriousness. They thought about how to bring fun into the learning process so that the students can learn with high involvement and can maintain interest in learning. As the result of this research, many different theories of learning have been developed by various psychologists as well as educationists; “Project-based Learning” is one example of it.
History: Project-based Learning is an interesting strategy of learning developed by William Heard Kilpatrick. He has developed this learning strategy from the model of learning; that has been developed by his teacher and well-known educationist, John Dewey. It is an instructional approach to engage students in cooperative learning or investigation.
Definition: According to Thomas Markham (2011) project-based learning (PBL) means, “PBL integrates knowing and doing. Students learn knowledge and elements of the core curriculum, but also apply what they know to solve authentic problems and produce results that matter. PBL students take advantage of digital tools to produce high quality, collaborative products. PBL refocuses education on the student, not the curriculum—a shift mandated by the global world, which rewards intangible assets such as drive, passion, creativity, empathy, and resiliency. These cannot be taught out of a textbook, but must be activated through experience.”
Project-based Learning mainly focuses on learning with collaboration or collaborative activities. It is a student-centred programme that allows him to learn at his speed and in his way. It is a process where students try to investigate and find out what is going on. In this process, the teacher plays the role of an observer who gives tasks to the students by forming groups of them. So in a way project-based learning is a group activity. When a teacher plans any kind of activity he/she takes into consideration the thing that how much it will be beneficial to the students for learning the present lesson as well as in future learning. If we try to draw several principles of this method of learning then it can be listed as, 1) Collaboration 2) The student-centred 3) Connection with the real world, etc.
Benefits of the method: If we think from students perspective then, when a teacher uses the project-based learning method in the classroom, it ultimately helps students in many ways; like 1) to develop critical thinking. 2) to enhance the imagination. 3) it shifts them away from the typical or traditional learning environment. 4) to develop different social skills. 5) it creates an opportunity for those students who usually remains passive in the classroom. 6) it helps to develop the habit of self-directed learning. 7) to develop the skill of problem-solving. 8) to build a good classroom community by opening more ways of interacting with each other.
To make the project-based learning successful several techniques have been used, for example, 1) Role Play, 2) Debates 3) Educational Games, 4) showing some news on a bulletin board 5) group discussion, 6) Creating a programme for illiterate, lean and idle people to work, 7) by researching by visiting the nearest archaeological site, 8) to do survey tasks, 9) participating in drama, construction of charts, graphs, to make reports on the survey, 10) to organize quiz or contests etc.
Conclusion: So, it can be said that (PBL) project-based learning is a very useful strategy for children to develop skills like critical thinking and problem solving etc. With the help of PBL, a teacher can also boost the interest of the student in learning and, along with it, it can also be useful to generate interest in those subjects which student dislikes or neglects to study. So in a way, PBL becomes an effective teaching and learning strategy in classrooms.
Mihir Valera 
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