PROJECT-BASED LEARNING

A central component of the IGS is the student-driven action projects. The program is designed to support project-based learning experiences in the local community such as habitat restoration and awareness campaigns. These projects take learning outside of the classroom where students' contributions make a difference to the well-being of the community. 

It is our connection with Haliburton Farm, a small organic cooperative, which has arguably evolved to be our most rewarding community connection.  Once a week, students from both junior and senior level IGS cohorts walk over to the farm and work with a group of farmers on a number of different tasks, from seed propagation to composting. 

Our students affectionately refer to the arrangement with the farmers as “Labour for Learning.”  The students also work collaboratively with university scientists to help restore a previously degraded wetland on the property.  This has been a powerful, hands-on educational experience as our students have helped return the area to a functioning vernal pond suitable for native species of amphibians. 

The work on the farm has also prompted our learners to undertake an ambitious permaculture project based on the ideas of water, food, energy, and waste on our campus.  We are currently in the midst of transforming an underused courtyard into a space that will produce food for our cafeteria and provide an inviting outdoor learning space which can be used year-round.

Capstone Projects

Student capstone projects (known as “Do Good” projects in the junior grades) are multifaceted assignments that serve as the culminating academic experience for IGS learners in Grades 10–12.  Students are asked to select a social/ecological challenge that interests them, conduct research on the topic, plan and implement a solution, and showcase their final outcome.  All capstone projects are underpinned by a problem or overarching question.  

From the beginning of the IGS program, teachers allocated a minimum of one 80-minute block per week to capstone projects.  The data reveal that the capstone projects, more than any other “product” or outcome, resonated with participants as a process that helped them actively engage their hearts and minds in authentic and meaningful ways. 

Most are semester-long investigative projects that culminate with a creative articulation of the learning that is shared with classmates and a panel of teachers and community members who collectively evaluate the final products.  So while the course content, guest presenters, and field studies previously discussed are primarily meant to encourage cognitive and skill-based development (head and hands), the capstone projects were intentionally designed to stimulate student agency (heart).  

Some of the more memorable projects include the installation of solar panels on the school, the construction of an outdoor classroom, fundraising for micro-credit institutions, and annual education campaigns around climate change and watershed restoration for elementary students.