Short Story Projects and Social Awareness: Students’ Experiences with Gender and Social Inclusion in a Project-Based Learning Context
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Abstract
Project-Based Learning (PjBL) is a teaching strategy that involves students in useful and relevant projects. This study investigates the students’ perspectives, difficulties, and learning experiences prior to, during, and after following a short story project that integrates gender and social inclusion issues. The project involved 26 English Department students from one of the Malang state universities in Indonesia using a case study design. Self-reflection reports on Padlet and observations were used to gather data. The results show that students had a favourable opinion of the short story project and valued how it improved their behavioural, affective, and cognitive abilities. Students felt they had improved comprehension of story elements as they also promoted critical thinking, creativity, and empathy. However, they faced both internal (writer’s block and poor self-confidence) and external problems (idea generation, creating engaging short story elements and time restrictions). The study suggests that incorporating PjBL with gender and social issues improves students’ writing skills, increases their social awareness and enhances their learning engagement. The results also imply that PjBL fosters 21st-century abilities like critical thinking, teamwork, and communication. The findings highlight the importance of incorporating social issues into writing classes in order to improve students’ academic and personal growth.
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