Reading Reflection 8

1) Building connections and branching out beyond the classroom all starts with choosing an interesting topic. The students can from there make connections to themselves or their community, bring in experts on that topic, expand their learning circle, and connect it to real world problems.

2) The EAST Initiative Model focuses on student driven learning, authentic project-based leaning, using technology as tools, and collaboration. It also focuses on training and support for the teachers that are bringing this model back to their own district. The teachers need to learn to allow the students to take the lead when it comes to their learning which can be a new concept for the teachers.

3) The largest reason to allow students to lead their projects is because it is THEIR project. It is a topic that they are passionate about and odds are that the students will know more about that particular topic than the teacher will. By picking their own topics, they will have more interest in the project as a whole and will be more willing to work at it and make something great come from the project.

4) The concept the relates best to our project from this chapter is that we are the ones leading our own project in this class. I know that personally I would have had no interest in doing a project on health (sorry, health groups) but and would not have gotten as much out of any work we did simply because the topic didn't interest me. By being able to choose gardening, I feel like I am much more engaged and getting more out of what we are doing.