Project-Based Learning: Insights into Life Beyond German and Math

Project-based learning at Steinmühle encourages students to “think outside the box.” It is designed to provide insight into areas of life that are otherwise rarely covered in general school instruction. Class 10a, along with their teacher Ines Vielhaben, demonstrated how project-based learning can be conducted. The topic here was “engagement”—a topic that had not yet been covered in project-based learning.

The goal for the students was to get involved in an open-ended project of their own choosing, based on their personal interests and passions. The focus was to be on social or environmental issues. Each presentation was accompanied by a self-created photo slideshow using PowerPoint. Feedback was provided by a pre-selected group from the class.

We attended the presentations given by the students who had chosen an extracurricular learning setting as part of their community service.

Gratitude in a Nursing Home

Ida Steinpaß and Anastasia Bieker were at the Wetter nursing home for their project. As they interacted with the residents, they learned how to establish contact and identified potential challenges, but they quickly gained the elderly residents’ trust and had many conversations with them. Ida and Anastasia were met with a great deal of gratitude, overcame a few obstacles while taking photos (“the hardest part”), and gained insight into the challenging daily lives of the nursing staff.

Shortage of Male Dogs at the Animal Shelter

Anna Schwarz-Teres had taken a look around the Cappel animal shelter. She reported on the many different animals housed there, their living conditions, and the staffing structure of the dedicated team, which would hardly be able to handle its wide range of tasks without volunteers. Anna didn’t hesitate to help clean the enclosures and learned that some animals are even turned in by the police or simply left on the shelter’s doorstep by strangers.

Joy from Handkäs

Jacob Schümann, Simon Specht, and Johannes Dersch had launched their own project. Under the name “Einkaufshilfe Marburg,” the team had even created flyers and distributed them in the Cappel area. When the response was slow to come, they decided on the spot to visit the senior living facility in Moischt and ask the residents directly about their small wishes. The requests came spontaneously—people asked for “Katjes, chocolate, and Handkäs.” The three reflected: “We were the young faces for the elderly. It was fun. Helping others makes you happy.”