From the Bookshelf

Ho, B. T., Netto-Shek, J., & Chang, S. C. A. (Eds.), (2004). Managing project work in schools: Issues and innovative practices. Singapore: Pearson Education South Asia.

Reviewed by Lynda Baloche, West Chester University

Managing Project Work in Schools is an edited volume that focuses on the use of project work in Singapore. Impetus for this volume came from, presumably, recent government policy. Much of what the authors share is applicable in different locations and cultures; the few chapters that seem Singapore-specific provide an interesting glimpse into various issues and procedures in a National education system.

The foreword to the book was been written by Art Costa, a strong and steady advocate developing ways of teaching and learning that encourage “real” thinking. Costa suggests that the adoption of project-based learning may require teachers to examine some of their own mental models about teaching and learning. Costa then lists several necessary “mind shifts.” These include moving from: a) a view of intelligence as fixed and innate towards viewing intelligence as a continuously expandable repertoire of skills that grow through effort; b) a transmission model to a constructed model for meaning making; c) the compartmentalization of subjects to trans-disciplinary learning; d) viewing education as a quest for right answers towards viewing education as knowing how to behave when answers are not apparent; e) a focus and dependence on external evaluation towards skills in, and valuing of, self assessment; and f) seeing the role of teacher as motivator towards seeing the role of teacher as liberator of passion for learning.  These are significant and critical shifts, and Costa does well to remind us to reflect on the personal and structural beliefs that might keep us from, and help us in, developing the full benefits of project work.

The volume is divided into five parts. Part I contains ten chapters that provide a good foundation for project work. These chapters are both practical and thought provoking. Most do an excellent job of referencing theory. From the vantage point of a reader versed in cooperative learning models, I saw substantive connections to cooperative learning and was pleased to read an entire chapter devoted to ideas for teaching discussion skills to students within the authentic context of a project group. Several

chapters in this section examine the roles teachers might assume during project learning—coaching, monitoring, assessing and collaborating in cross-disciplinary teams. Multiple chapters examine issues related to student reflection and planning; I found the chapter “Keeping Reflective Journals” to be particularly rich. If I had one concern about Part I, it would be the chapter “Principles of Team Formation.” I felt this chapter provided less insight into the complexity of the topic than was needed, and I was surprised to see heterogeneity mentioned only as it might relate to class rankings.

Parts II and III are both short. Part II focuses on research studies. One chapter is devoted to an examination of students' reflections on project work; the other is devoted to the perceptions of pre-service teachers. Part III contains three chapters. The first two chapters describe the use of project work in homogeneous-ability groups—one “lower ability” and the other “gifted.” A third chapter examines an approach to project work in a junior college (which in the Singapore context is for university-bound students mostly from ages 17-18).

Part IV contains four chapters; each focuses on a specific approach to project work. I feel compelled to say that these four chapters were just plain fun to read. They are varied and the foci range from problem-based learning and science experiments to storylines and the use of drama in project work. Each contains many specifics, and readers get a sense of the writers’ passions and their own struggles and growth as they construct projects with students. Chapter 18, Storyline, mentions the need to construct projects and project groups with an eye to differing abilities. The authors reference Gardner and multiple intelligence theory. I would suggest that readers might want to extend their understanding of multiple abilities by reading the work of Elizabeth Cohen as well.  Part V focuses on resource support for project work. I think this section would be of interest primarily to teachers in Singapore.

This volume is a good resource on project-based learning. The book is well-organized, and each chapter is carefully focused. Read from “cover-to-cover,” it provides a substantive view of project work. It can also be used as a resource to extend understanding of specific aspects of project work. For those of us who do not live in Southeast Asia, it also provides an interesting picture of focused implementation of a complex and challenging model for teaching and learning.