Building Critical Thinking Behaviour of Middle School Students through Project Based Learning

Innovation in learning is aimed to improve the quality of learning which can be recognized from students‟ performance and outcomes. One of the innovations which recently discussed is Project Based Learning (PBL) as one method to encourage students centered classes. There is increasing awareness in Indonesia to implement PBL in school across the country. It can be seen from the fact that Project Based Learning is promoted in the latest curriculum enacted in 2013. Kurikulum 2013 is designed with Project Based Learning as an important part; as it is encouraged to apply PBL in all school level starting from elementary level. On the other hand, critical thinking as one significant element in Project Based Learning is not yet adequately addressed by educators in the formal pedagogy. The paper will examine critical thinking behavior of middle school students through project based learning and give suggestions on how to implement PBL which internalizes critical thinking. As project-based learning allows students multiple options for taking information, making sense of any ideas, and expressing what they have learned, the writers believe that the precise moment to internalize critical thinking through this learning approach is at Middle School level. Klein, et al (2010) mention that at this age students have already experienced with subjects knowledge they receive in elementary school. They, then, suggest 5 (five) stages that have been developed in Division of Teaching and Learning Office of Curriculum, Standards, and Academic Engagement of New York; the stages are establishing content and skill goals, conducting instructional activities, developing formats for final products, planning the scope of the project and assessing project design. The objective level of Bloom‟s education taxonomy which later called as critical thinking puts efforts on analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating. The ongoing process of PBL directly leads students to work on those three dimensions. To measure students‟ critical thinking on PBL, teachers can apply either holistic or analytic; it could be in grid or rubric