Many teachers require the use of research skills for project work. Research skills are to a motivated learner what dribbling and passing skills are to gifted basketball player - the means to an end. How else is a student to learn? This curriculum emphasizes basic skills, the fundamentals that make it possible to be an independent learner.
Research is the key to most individualized learning. Given students who have been taught to find and use information independently, a teacher has the luxury to spend time and energy providing a classroom setting where students can, in fact, learn on their own. Remove that “given” and the teacher’s role becomes one of “information provider”, rather than “learning facilitator”. This curriculum was not produced to provide independent study projects for students; rather, it was designed to teach students how to become independent learners. The process of teaching students to use research skills requires a dedicated teacher who understands that a product is always preceded by a process. In this case, the ability to conduct a research project must be preceded by the acquisition of skills, which is what this curriculum is all about.
The Environment Around Me
curriculum is based upon skill development. The activities are arranged according to the amount of independence required, and a list of skills is provided for every activity in this curriculum. Many of them are basic common sense skills that are already being taught in your classes.
The skills are divided into seven general skills areas: research, writing, planning, problem solving, self-discipline, self-evaluation, and presentation. Examination of skills quickly shows which skills are important to an activity and which ones may be of secondary value. An activity may be changed or rearranged to redirect its skill requirements. The activities in this curriculum are designed to teach the use of skills. If an activity lists twenty skills, but you want to emphasize only five or six of them, this is a perfectly legitimate use of the activity.
Evaluating students on their mastery of skills often involves subjective judgments; each student should be evaluated according to his or her improvement rather than by comparison with other students. Activities will have evaluation forms to help with this process. In addition, the “Teacher’s Introduction to the Student” provides evaluation for notecards, posters, and oral presentation.
