How can school become an authentic part of a young person’s real life? Project-based and interdisciplinary learning can be good places to start. Using these approaches, teachers can create more engaging learning experiences, shift fluidly between individual and group work, and take on projects where students learn across traditional academic disciplines. Students can venture out into the community for projects, expeditions, portfolio-building, and in-depth research. These activities can give students a chance to immerse themselves in academic content, grapple with complex ideas, and develop skills as they demonstrate their learning.

Seymour Papert, a renowned mathematician and educator from MIT, built the Logo programming language to engage young people in project-based learning. He believes critical thinking and identity formation are best fostered through hands-on, real-world projects. A growing number of today’s educators agree.

Project-based learning tends to span several subject areas—after all, real-world problems don’t usually fit into distinct categories. For example, a school project could ask students to build a concept for sustainable housing solutions. Through this, students explore history, science, technology, engineering, and design, while fostering collaborative skills.