Abstract:

The ability to solve problems is a most important general cross-curricular competence that a student needs to acquire in order to complete compulsory primary education in the Republic of Serbia. This competence implies that the student is competent to engage his/her individual capacities (knowledge in different subjects, experience gained outside the school, as well as intellectual, emotional, and social abilities) and other resources at his/her disposal (various sources of information, tools, books, experiences of other students, teachers, and other persons from school and out-of-school environment, etc.), selectively and purposefully uses them, persists in solving problems, and finds an effective solution to the defined problem situations that occur in the course of learning. According to the literature, Project Based Learning is considered to be one of the teaching methods that contributes to the achievement of this competence. Project Based Learning is a problem solving method that introduces students to the processes of researching, finding and concluding, as well as keeping records of what has been done. The project should integrate and connect the contents of different subjects, connecting knowledge gained by the student through his/her own experience at the same time. Project Based Learning is an innovative model that changes the role of teachers and students. The teacher is the coordinator who encourages and directs the teaching process, while the students are the main stakeholders in the activity. All these are the reasons why Project Based Learning is a stimulating challenge for teachers, which requires their great expertise and responsibility.

Numerous studies have highlighted the benefits of Project Based Learning in the implementation of the content of sciences in primary and secondary education. In addition to qualitative indicators, Project Based Learning also enables quantitative progress of students, i.e. better and more lasting knowledge of the studied teaching contents.

Although curriculum for primary school in Serbia requires the application of the Project Based Learning in the implementation of the contents of natural sciences, Biology teaching at Serbian schools is predominantly implemented in the traditional way, in which the student has a passive role and reproductively memorizes the facts, while the teacher dominates the classroom. The main reason for this situation is the inertia, incompetence, and unwillingness of the teaching staff to accept Project Based Learning as a need of the contemporary educational process. In order to appropriately represent Project Based Learning in the implementation of biological contents, the paper first emphasizes the importance of the application of Project Based Learning in Biology teaching, and then provides scenarios for the implementation of five mini projects within processing of the teaching topic Origin and Diversity of Life prescribed by the Biology curriculum for the fifth grade of the primary school. The projects presented deal with real life issues from the immediate environment of the students, and strive to result in the change of the students towards their environment. The examples of Project Based Learning should be an incentive for Biology teachers to similarly implement high-quality and interesting projects in their teaching practice, which would significantly contribute to the modernization of teaching and easier learning of Biology.

Keywords:

Project Based Learning, Biology Teaching, Primary School, Mini Projects.