Making Application of The Project Method in Technology Education

The project method as a teaching strategy in Technology Education has been a cornerstone in a variety of ways since its humble beginnings in the mid 1860s at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Illinois Industrial University circa 1870 (Knoll, 1997). The project method was used to allow students to completely create a “project” from initial concept through the design process to actual construction. The drawback was the lack of time for students to study and conduct research. Bennett (1937) noted that Runkle and Woodward adapted the “Russian system” to the secondary school system by first educating students on how to use tools and techniques, then applying these acquired abilities to an independent project. A result of Woodward’s efforts this approach to Manual Training was widely accepted across the nation and was even extended to elementary schools.