Education has come a long way from the three Rs — students are encouraged to join in with interactive learning, technology-based classrooms and plenty of hands-on experience.
Fairview Township author Dayna Laur took this concept of project-based learning and expanded upon it in her new guide aimed at teachers and administrators: “Authentic Learning Experiences: A Real-World Approach to Project-Based Learning.”
Laur took a few minutes to explain the concept behind the book:
Name: Dayna Laur
Age: 37
Lives in: Fairview Township
Occupation: Educational consultant
Family: Husband, two daughters
Tell us about the book: “Authentic Learning Experiences” is an educator’s guide to creating and implementing a new framework designed to have students tackle real-life problems that are faced by adults on a local, state, national or global scale. The framework is outlined in detail and gives teachers multiple, full examples from a variety of grade levels and content areas. The framework and all examples are tightly linked to the new national Common Core standards that have been adopted by Pennsylvania.
Where did the idea come from?: I began implementing authentic learning experiences in my own classroom when I taught social studies at the high-school level. Project-based learning has been around for many years, but I found that teachers were using the existing framework to create simulated experiences for students. In order to truly engage students, it is necessary for them to participate in challenging investigations that call for deeper learning, rather than mere memorization of facts.
Where can readers purchase a copy?: “Authentic Learning Experiences” is available through Routledge publishing.
Also of interest:
— Read more on education at Cram Session, www.yorkblog.com/cram
