TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF USING PROJECT-BASED ASSESSMENTS IN IMPROVING THE CRITICAL THINKING AND TEAM BUILDING SKILLS OF A GRADE 11 BUSINESS EDUCATION CLASS – Published Thesis by TIOU CLARKE
Final Dissertation Presented to The Academic Department Of the School of Social and Human Studies In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Education Abstract Critical thinking and team building skills are some of the sought after skills that students need to have but lack in the world of work. The purpose of this qualitative research is to understand the effectiveness of Project-based assessment on the critical thinking and team building skills of a group of grade 11 business education students. The study population for this reach was a group of 15 students along with a total of 5 teachers and administrative staff at a local high school in Jamaica. They were given a group project in three parts and observed using interviews, focus groups and comparison of current assignment with previous assignment to identify themes to answer the central research question. Data were analyzed and three themes were derived; students are not against working in groups, their critical thinking and team building skills were improved, and longer time for group would reveal more information. The findings and recommendations noted that using this form of assessment would improve the learning outcome of students by the end of the school year and produce more industry ready employees. – TIOU CLARKE
