Project-based Learning
Project-based learning (PBL) is an approach to learning that allows students to create and design projects based on standards. Research suggests that it has a positive impact on minority student achievement. This is due to the relationships, higher-order thinking skills, and relevance that these projects can have to students and their communities.
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At Dominion Purpose Academy, relationships are developed through PBL via collaborative Design Thinking Purpose Projects, which are created in Design Labs. Designers work together to design and implement problem-solving passion projects.
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PBL is rigorous due to the interdisciplinary nature of the projects and the need to apply higher-order thinking skills from Bloom’s Taxonomy, coupled with Webb’s Depth of Knowledge.
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PBL also speaks to relevance, as students engage with solutions that are meaningful to their communities while working directly with community members.
Relationships
DPA will utilize Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), Restorative Practices, and Servant Leadership to build relationships throughout the school community. This approach will promote school-wide collaboration in supporting students’ social, emotional, and behavioral needs. Servant Leadership will also empower students to build relationships within the community, deepening their understanding of how knowledge, skills, and dispositions connect to the real world.
Rigor
DPA will use Design Thinking in both core and elective courses to support engaging and rigorous academics. Design Thinking is the instructional method that will undergird the project-based learning students engage with, as it requires higher-order thinking skills and a greater depth of knowledge while providing various solutions to real-world challenges.
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Purpose Projects—grounded in Design Thinking and 21st Century Skills—will be a distinctive feature at DPA. We incorporate 21st Century Skills into our school-wide program based on data from community engagement surveys, focus groups, and listening sessions. Including this in our program will also prepare students for rigorous high schools that emphasize college and career readiness.
Relevance
While Servant Leadership helps students build relationships with the community, it also connects them to the relevance of their Design Thinking Purpose Projects, which aim to provide current solutions to challenges within the community. Students will design projects that allow them to explore their purpose, understand their place in the world, and help others by applying 21st Century Skills. Servant Leadership enables students to take their ideas from Design Thinking and implement them in the community. Students will work alongside their guides and community leaders, who will evaluate and provide feedback on their ideas. Collaboration with the community will be paramount as students work to solve real-world problems that impact their lives.
Grades 4-8
Dominion Purpose Academy is designed in a developmentally appropriate way, based on standards from the Association for Middle Level Education.
