Fostering twenty-first century skills among primary school students through math project-based learning

In today’s modern world, students must be equipped with twenty-first century skills, particularly those related to solving real-life problems, to ensure competitiveness in the current global economy. The present study employed project-based learning (PBL) as an instructional tool for teaching math at the primary level. A convergent mixed-methods approach was adopted to determine whether the PBL approach has improved students’ twenty-first century skills, including collaborative, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills. Thirty-five students of the experimental group were treated with PBL, while 35 students of the control were treated with the traditional teaching method. ANCOVA test for “critical thinking skills” showed a significant difference between the experimental and control group (F = 104.833, p = 0.000 < 0.05). For collaborative skills, results also showed a significant difference between the two groups (F = 32.335, p = 0.000 < 0.05). For problem-solving skills, the mean value of experimental (25.54) and control group (16.94) showed a high difference after the intervention. The t-value (8.284) and the p value (p = 0.000) also showed a highly significant difference. Observations of the classroom also revealed the favorable effects of employing PBL. PBL activities boosted the level of collaboration and problem-solving skills among students. Students could advance their collaboration abilities, including promoting one another’s viewpoints, speaking out when necessary, listening to one another, and participating in thoughtful discussions. During the PBL project, students’ active participation and effective collaboration were observed, significantly contributing to its success.