A shor t history of IP

The idea behind IP

Once upon a time in Québec, there was a group of passionate

educators who wanted students to have an opportunity to apply their knowledge to a personal project at the end of their secondary studies.

The projects they envisioned were important because they would permit each student to satisfy his/her curiosity, to learn more about

themselves, and to address a subject important to them. These projects would be integrative: they would permit students to become conscious of the purpose and meaning of prior learning in a project

beyond an academic framework.

The bir th of IP

The idea was worthwhile! But how could it be transformed into a

program that was applicable and effective? Based on these questions, a working committee was created that would write and experiment with what ultimately became the Integrative Project Program. In the

beginning, the committee consisted of a dozen people – teachers, principals, pedagogical consultants, directors of educational services, and professionals from the Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport. Eventually, representatives from cegeps and universities, as

well as teachers interested in experimenting with the program, joined the committee and enlarged its base of inspiration.

Experimenting with IP

To create a feasible program , teachers and pedagogical consultants

– motivated by an opportunity to accompany students through the realization of a stimulating process filled with individual challenges

and choices – developed and shared pedagogical strategies.

During the years of conception and experimentation, the program

was the object of diverse reactions:

Patient and creative appropriation in one, and sometimes many, schools of almost every school board in Québec and in many private schools;

Enthusiasm in the educational milieu where the engagement of teachers, consultants, and principals was rewarded by the high quality of work and reflections of many students;

Worries about certain organizational challenges that were delineated in a supporting guide*.

*General Information Guide for the Integrative Project Program Adapted and translated for the English-speaking community

The function of IP

Integrative Project Program was incorporated into the Québec

Education Program as part of the scholastic pathway whose purpose is to help students construct knowledge. In 2004, the IP program

became part of course selection for Secondary V students as stipulated in the Basic School Regulation.

IP community, IP network

Based on the logic of co-construction, the Ministère de l’Éducation,

du Loisir et du Sport created a Web site dedicated to the Integrative Project Program for the development and sharing of expertise. For almost 5 years, pedagogical consultants, teachers, and principals of schools experimenting with the IP program, have used this space for

the exchange of ideas, questions, and productions. This site, animated by the provincial RÉCIT service, averages close to 500 members.

Becoming an incubator for the IP community of practice where each person can evolve, step by step, from observer to producer of

resources, the site has become a storehouse of useful pedagogical resources for this non-traditional program.

ICT, a suppor t for diverse challenges

This program poses challenges not only for students but also for

teachers, pedagogical consultants, and school administrators who must juggle a number of elements. Information and communication technologies are useful for accompanying, evaluating and managing the individual choices made by students. During the past two years,

with the help of the IP Web site, teachers are increasingly using virtual classrooms to follow and monitor the creative processes of their students. Technologies that frequently form part of students’ leisure activities can also be a support for their academic learning.

Looking to find solutions to challenges posed by communicating with

school personnel located across the province, the MELS IP team has also benefitted from innovative technologies, including their offer of

on-line training in the Spring of 2010.

A history that continues

The project of creating the « Integrative Project Program » only

began 7 years ago: long enough for many students to have lived through enriching experiences; long enough for intervention

strategies to be refined and for several teachers and consultants to pose questions and share resources « publicly »; long enough for

teachers, thrilled with the results of their students’ projects and the types of teacher-student relationships made possible by this program,

to say: « They have accomplished so much more than I ever even imagined.»

The future of the Integrative Project Program is still unfolding.

Students, guided by conscientious teachers who have helped them develop the competencies needed to carry out on-going projects, will

continue to be autonomous learners – the key to successful integration. Everyone is contributing to its continued existence!