Page 61 - Pedagoška vizija / A Pedagogical Vision

Exploring the Content of Cultural Heritage through Project-Based Learning

Consequently, students may not perceive any additional value in engaging
with it. Thirdly, cultural heritage is still perceived by many young people as
boring and out of touch with the present times (Fakin Bajec 2019), similarly
expressed by one of the students in this research. Fourthly, the fact that the
assignment was voluntary did not serve as an incentive; the students were
notpromisedanythinginreturnfortheirparticipation.Itwasanticipatedthat
their engagement would stem from their passion. Consequently, it seems
that external motivation in the form of grades, awards, compensation, etc.
continues to exert considerable influence (Chandran and Awang 2023).
Further, the findings confirm the idea that PBL surpasses traditional learn-
ing methods in terms of complexity, resources, location, and time. The film-
ing process demanded that students extend their focus beyond the conven-
tional learning environment, seeking elements that would give the docu-
mentaryanaestheticvalueandradiateauthenticity,whichwouldnotbepos-
sible solely within the school building. This parallels Al-Balushi and Al-Aamri
(2014) as well as Wurdinger, Hugg, and Bezon (2007), who stress that the very
essence of PBL is to go beyond in-class learning and provide experiential sit-
uations where students encounter meaningful learning experiences.
Additionally, the crucial role of the teacher was acknowledged for their
indispensability in guiding students towards producing a quality end prod-
uct. This was demonstrated by mentors who provided effective scaffold-
ing, evident in the use of guiding questions designed to enhance students’
metacognitiveskills.Thesequestionspromptedstudentsto assesstheirwork
and anticipate the following steps, thereby fostering opportunities for self-
improvement and enhancement of their ongoing tasks. This finding res-
onates with the work of several authors (Hmelo-Silver, Duncan, and Chinn
2007;Webb 2009;Chu et al.2016; Perry, Lundie,and Golder 2018;Miceli2019)
who emphasize the importance of effective scaffolding in easing students’
cognitive load as well as serving as a valuable tool for constructive coping
with stressful situations.
As seen in this study, time devoted to PBL in an interdisciplinary way influ-
enced and shaped students’ perceptions of cultural heritage. By combining
historyandITCknowledgeaswellasmanyskillsandcompetenciesandbyre-
specting in-situ trends, students now claim they are significantly more aware
of the importance of heritage in their lives and that is why they show more
respect towards it. It might be argued that the creative process of making
the documentary empowered them to engage themselves more deeply in
their immediate surroundings and created opportunities for their voices to
be heard and accepted (Halu Yaziciğlu and Güçin Küçkkaya 2016). All in all,
the findings align with Maksimović, Stanković, and Osmanović (2020) in their
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