Project-Based Learning Guide
PBL Guide
Project-Based Learning
A Resource for Instructors and Program Coordinators
Brought to you by National Academy Foundation and Pearson Foundation
Project-Based Learning Guide
Table of Contents
Overview
page 3
What Is Project-Based Learning?
page 4
When to Use Project-Based Learning
page 7
Conditions that Support Project-Based Learning
page 8
Research Supporting Project-Based Learning
page 10
PBL Examples and Links
page 11
Project Design
page 12
The Six A’s of Project-Based Learning
page 14
Authenticity
page 15
Academic Rigor
page 16
Adult Connections
page 17
Active Exploration
page 18
Applied Learning
page 19
Assessment Practices
page 20
Project Delivery
page 22
PBL GUIDE: INSTRUCTORS AND PROGRAM COORDINATORS
page 2
Project-Based Learning Guide
Overview
This project-based learning resource, created as part of a partnership between the Pearson Foundation and the National Academy Foundation, focuses on digital storytelling as a tool and instructional best practice for Academies. The information included in this primer is designed to supplement three exciting, project-based digital arts opportunities available to schools in the NAF network:
Capturing a Career – a project where students create brief “video resumes” that highlight their interests, skills, experiences, and career aspirations.
Digital Storytelling – a project where students from any Academy or course develop and communicate insights about a topic through short video documentaries.
Professional Development Technology Workshops – a “teacher as student” professional development opportunity where participants build teamwork and technology skills as they create a useful video products to support their own programs.
These technology projects provide accessible models of project-based learning and serve as powerful opportunities to advance broader school reform goals through engaging project work.
Technology integration activities are a natural fit for project-based learning. Reasons why technology-based projects such as these serve as exceptional models of PBL and as examples of best practices of classroom instruction include:
•
Project Authenticity, ensuring students use technology to create tangible products for real audiences beyond the classroom.
•
Student Engagement, allowing students to shape the curriculum as they make significant production choices throughout the project.
•
Active Learning, encouraging students to solve problems and communicate their understanding by using technology tools.
•
Rigorous Communications Skills, developed in the reading, writing, listening, speaking, and presenting activities integral to technology-based projects.
•
Practical Life Skills, developed through collaboration, decision-making, and critical thinking; transferable to other educational and work settings.
Beyond modeling best practices of classroom instruction, these kinds of technology-based projects also help advance the goals of broader school reform. These experiences align with the six elements in NAF’s framework for school change:
1.
Personalization: Technology projects foster a classroom setting that is focused on teamwork, inquiry, and shared expectations for student work.
2.
Academic Engagement of All Students: Technology projects allow all students, regardless of background, to participate in deep learning experiences and develop workplace skills.
3.
Empowered Educators: Technology projects encourage teachers to make key decisions about how to design curriculum and instruction and provide opportunities for teachers to develop their own technology skills.
4.
Accountable Leaders: Technology projects give site officials tangible evidence of student learning through student products and performances.
5.
Engaged Community and Youth: Technology projects provide ample opportunities for parents, employer partners, and other community members to interact with students and their work in meaningful ways.
6.
Integrated System of High Standards, Curriculum, Instruction, Assessments, and Supports:
Technology projects can provide a school or Academy with excellent, performance-based assessment options for their overall instructional system.
PBL GUIDE: INSTRUCTORS AND PROGRAM COORDINATORS
page 3
Project-Based Learning Guide
What Is Project-Based Learning?
From the primary-grade teacher who engages students in studying spiders for a month to the high school physics teacher who has students build a bridge from balsa wood, nearly all teachers say that they include “projects” in their teaching repertoire. Upon closer examination, however, the distinctions between units, exercises, activities, performance assessments, problems, and projects are not particularly clear. While educators differ in their use of these terms, the definition here pulls together ideas from best practices, research, and curriculum experts.
Well-designed projects ask students to:
•
Tackle real problems and issues that have importance to people beyond the classroom.
Projects emanate from issues of real importance to students and adults in the community and answer the age-old student question “Why do we need to know this?”
•
Actively engage in their learning and make important choices during the project.
Projects make room for student choice and creativity while still demanding student mastery of essential content, enabling students and teachers to interact as co-learners in the experience, rather than in the traditional student-teacher relationship.
•
Demonstrate in tangible ways that they have learned key concepts and skills.
Projects provide opportunities for students to produce observable evidence that they have mastered rigorous curricular standards as they apply their learning and solve the problem at hand. Projects and exhibitions also provide extensive evidence of process work and self-directed learning.
WHAT IS PROJECT- BASED LEARNING?
page 4
Project-Based Learning Guide
Projects vs. Activities
Many so-called “projects” found in schools are more accurately termed “activities.” Here are some examples of both:
ACTIVITY
VS
PROJECT
Students in a history class
Students in a history class spend three weeks focused
study Westward Expansion for
on the essential question “How did Westward
three weeks, culminating with a
VS
Expansion impact our community?” Students learn
“Frontier Feast” where students
about the period, research local connections, and
dress in period costumes and eat
design a museum exhibit featuring historical artifacts,
typical western fare from the era.
primary source documents, and expert commentary
from local historians. The exhibit is mounted in the
community center lobby, and students serve as docents
to the general public.
Students in a Spanish class study
Students in a Spanish class spend five weeks
Central American nations for
collaborating with a travel destinations course to
five weeks. Students select a
design travel briefings for members of a local service
country, conduct research, write
club who are considering planning a volunteer work
a two-page report, and give a
VS
trip somewhere in Central America. Integrated student
three-minute oral presentation (in
teams provide club officials with written and oral reports
Spanish) about their country to
outlining important considerations when traveling to
the class.
various Central American countries. Students learning
Spanish translate oral presentations onto audio for later
critique.
Students in a principles of
Students in a principles of business class study
business class study management
management skills and work with a local business
skills, complete a “personal
partner to answer the question “How can we help
skills inventory” assessment,
managers develop new skills on the job?” After
interview a manager at a local
VS
conducting surveys and research, students design a
business, and write a paper that
website that provides managers with links, resources,
describes what they think are
and tips for developing their skills in 10 key areas. To
the three most important skills
launch and promote the website, students make a
for managers to succeed in the
formal presentation to three actual managers at their
workplace.
employer partner’s workplace.
WHAT IS PROJECT- BASED LEARNING?
page 5
Project-Based Learning Guide
Types of Student Work
Curriculum experts Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe describe distinct types of student work in their book Understanding by Design (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development [ASCD], 2005).
Quiz and Test Items • Highly structured
•
Close-ended, have a “right answer”
•
Focused on factual information, concepts, or discrete skills out of context
Examples: worksheets, end-of-chapter questions, state or national exams
Academic Prompts • Often “ill structured” – require a strategy to answer
•
Open-ended, require judgments to be made during scoring
•
Usually under “exam conditions” with the teacher as the audience
Examples: essay questions, problem solving on class exams
Performance Tasks
• Complex challenges that culminate in one or more products or
(includes projects)
performances
• Range from short-term tasks to multidimensional projects
• Require students to apply knowledge and skill to solve a problem
• Real-world audience and context for the work
Examples: science fair projects, formal debates, video documentaries
Links
Stanford University’s School Redesign Network includes links to many resources that help define and understand PBL. (http://www.schoolredesign.net/srn/server.php?idx=850)
PBL is consistent with best practices in instructional design. To learn more, visit ASCD’s Understanding by Design Exchange. (http://www.ubdexchange.org/default.html)
WHAT IS PROJECT- BASED LEARNING?
page 6
Project-Based Learning Guide
When to Use Project-Based Learning
Project-based learning is a powerful tool in a teacher’s repertoire of strategies. Given the effort required to design and implement a good project, teachers need to ensure that they are using the strategy at the right time and for the right reasons. Here are some key questions that teachers should consider when deciding if a PBL experience is suited to their instructional needs:
•
Do the content standards call for demonstration, application, performance, or understanding?
PBL lends itself perfectly to performance-based assessments, applied learning, and demonstration of deep content understanding. During the project planning phase, teachers must make sure that the project will result in student-generated evidence of learning that aligns closely with intended skill and content standards. However, PBL is not the best solution for teaching discrete skills out of context, such as spelling or keyboarding.
•
Is there a way to capitalize on opportunities in the community through a PBL approach?
While beginning project design with the content standards can work, some teachers find it more useful to start instead by uncovering timely issues from their school or community. Using this approach, project ideas can emerge from local environmental conflicts, regional development proposals, or national political issues. Once they’ve found the “hook” for the project, teachers can “backward map” their design to ensure that required content standards are adequately addressed.
•
Is there enough time and are the necessary resources available?
Practical considerations must be made when deciding if a project is appropriate. In terms of instructional time, projects can actually save time if standards and content are delivered through
– and not separate from – the project. If resources are an issue, project plans can often be scaled back to accommodate constraints while preserving the power of the experience. However, there are instances when time and resources conspire to make PBL a less-than-appropriate choice.
•
Can standards, skills, and habits of mind be prioritized and sequenced so that the project is doable?
While PBL does enable teachers to meet simultaneous outcomes in the classroom, project plans can become unwieldy and undoable if too many standards and learning objectives are packed into a limited timeframe. Through experience, teachers can learn to design and deliver projects that fit and further their course objectives.
•
Can all students be supported to produce high-quality work?
Well-designed projects include appropriate scaffolds that set students up for success. These supports, which can include things such as peer tutoring on important concepts or additional training on key technological skills, are often the difference-makers for students on the margins. Examples of quality products, explicit feedback on draft work, and careful sequencing of necessary skills are other key components in helping all students to achieve at high levels.
WHEN TO USE PROJECT- BASED LEARNING
page 7
Project-Based Learning Guide
Conditions that Support Project-Based Learning
Project-based learning strategies thrive within classrooms that are learning-centered environments. The classroom, school, and community conditions described here – many of which are precursors to powerful instruction of any type – help teachers and students alike in their PBL work.
In the Classroom
Conditions within the classroom itself have the greatest impact on successful project design and implementation. Key factors include:
•
Safe, respectful learning environments
The physical and intellectual safety of all learners must be protected so that students can take the learning risks demanded by complex project situations. Teachers must set clear behavioral boundaries and encourage an atmosphere where competing ideas can coexist respectfully.
•
Personalized teacher-student relationships
Skillful teachers get to know their students well enough to be able to customize (or “differentiate”) project instruction to the needs and interests of individual learners. This requires intentional relationship-building with students; active, respectful listening on the part of teachers; and real opportunities for students to co-create their learning environment.
•
Productive peer relationships
The advanced teamwork skills that most projects require of students call for a classroom environment where students know, trust, and value each other and are ready to engage in intense collaborative situations. Skillful PBL practitioners also know how to limit and redirect standard competitive urges students may exhibit and instead build a true community of learners.
•
Transformed teacher roles
PBL transforms the role of the teacher from content provider to learning coordinator. As a result, teachers spend less time lecturing and leading and more time planning, observing, listening, coaching, and facilitating.
•
Intensified teacher engagement and commitment
In a PBL environment where teachers ask students to engage fully in their own learning and exhibit their work beyond the classroom, teachers must reciprocate and model an elevated level of commitment in return. This means going the extra mile for students, responding to individual needs, maintaining expectations of success for all, and refusing to let students “hide” or get by with halfhearted efforts. Teaching in this way is not for the faint of heart, but it is deeply rewarding. Ultimately, students do not care how much teachers know until they know that they care.
At the School
Beyond the classroom, PBL works best when the broader school environment provides numerous supports. Schools can foster PBL through:
•
Supportive school structures
Schools that most successfully personalize instruction tend to be small or feel small, often by grouping students into cohorts of around 100 students. Small schools and small learning community programs allow teachers to team up on project design and implementation and provide ideal settings for curricular integration. In addition, schools that provide daily schedules with extended blocks of instructional time are well suited to the use of PBL as an instructional strategy.
CONDITIONS THAT SUPPORT PROJECT- BASED LEARNING
page 8
Project-Based Learning Guide
•
Professional collaboration
With or without teacher teaming, PBL benefits from quality collaboration between teachers. The ability to share project ideas, strategies, resources, and results can make a tremendous difference for educators, particularly during the early stages of their careers or PBL efforts.
•
Administrative support
The active support of principals and other building-level leaders is essential if teachers and students are to sustain their PBL efforts over time. Tangible supports that administrators can provide include funding for project materials, staff development opportunities, and verbal and written support for teachers using PBL strategies.
In the Community
The broader local community is the final piece of the PBL support puzzle. Potential supports that exist beyond the school grounds include:
•
Parent involvement in learning
Parents can play a key role in supporting PBL by engaging with their students in the inquiry process, providing additional resources to the classroom, and serving as audience members for public exhibitions of student learning. Some teachers even train parent teams to provide formative assessment feedback to students on draft project work. The authentic nature of well-designed projects helps teachers move parental involvement beyond the bake sale into truly meaningful engagement in learning.
•
Community partnerships
Community organizations, employer partners, and institutions of higher education can also support classroom PBL efforts in a multitude of ways. Some of these partners can provide the impetus
for a project by “subcontracting” students to solve real problems for their school, business, or organization. Others can work with classroom teachers to provide adult mentors, project directors, content experts, and exhibition panels. It turns out that the old adage is true – it really does take a village to raise a child.
Links
The Small Schools Project boasts an amazing collection of resources to assist those educators creating small learning communities and small schools where PBL can thrive. (http://smallschoolsproject.org/)
The High Tech High network features schools designed to support PBL in the classroom. (http://www.hightechhigh.org/)
CONDITIONS THAT SUPPORT PROJECT- BASED LEARNING
page 9
Project-Based Learning Guide
Research Supporting Project-Based Learning
The wide variety of project-based learning definitions, theories, strategies, and supports poses challenges to those conducting academic research on the approach. Despite these limitations, an increasing body of knowledge in the field suggests that PBL benefits both students and teachers.
For example, research by Dr. Fred Newmann of the University of Madison-Wisconsin shows that “authentic intellectual work” – a strategy that shares many of the features of high-level PBL – boosts student achievement, even when assessed by standardized measures. Newmann used three criteria to define instruction that was “authentic”:
•
Construction of knowledge – authentic work asks students to engage directly in experiences designed to build their understanding of new content.
•
Disciplined inquiry – authentic work connects new learning to students’ prior knowledge base, requires them to develop an in-depth understanding of concepts, and asks them to communicate their learning through oral and written methods.
•
Value beyond school – authentic work ensures that student inquiry and work products operate within a real-world context that students and adults outside the classroom consider worthwhile.
In addition, according to an analysis of PBL research completed in 2000 by Dr. John W. Thomas, evidence can be found to support the following:
•
PBL is more popular with students and teachers than traditional methods.
•
Compared to other instructional models, PBL enhances the quality of student learning in subject matter areas.
•
PBL seems to be equal to or slightly better than other models of instruction for producing gains in general academic achievement.
•
PBL is an effective strategy for teaching complex skills such as planning, communicating, problem solving, and decision making.
•
PBL can help increase student attendance, attitude, and self-reliance. For teachers, PBL can help increase professionalism and collaboration.
•
In order for PBL to succeed, teachers must provide support for students in skills such as inquiry learning, effective technology use, metacognition, and workplace skills (for example, time management).
•
PBL effectiveness is enhanced when incorporated into whole-school change efforts.
Links
Read about Dr. Fred Newmann’s research on authentic intellectual work. (http://www.consortium-chicago. org/publications/p0a02.html)
Read Dr. John W. Thomas’s study of PBL as an instructional strategy to create rigorous and relevant learning experiences. (http://www.bobpearlman.org/BestPractices/PBL_Research.pdf)
RESEARCH SUPPORTING PROJECT- BASED LEARNING
page 10
Project-Based Learning Guide
PBL Examples and Links
Many outstanding project-based learning examples and resources are available online thanks to educators around the world. Here are some of our favorite sites:
Project Examples
PBL at NAF, Digital Storytelling for Academy Students and Instructors (http://pearsonfoundation.org/NAF)
The NAF/Pearson Foundation Digital Storytelling Project is modeled on exemplary PBL principles.
What Kids Can Do (http://www.whatkidscando.org/index.asp)
This national nonprofit organization focused on student voice has links to several outstanding projects in their “projects and products” section (under “Student Work & Voice”).
STEPs (link to http://itd.usd259.org/steps/pbl.htm)
The Standards for Teachers through Educational Projects site includes video downloads of exemplary projects.
Edutopia – The George Lucas Educational Foundation (http://www.edutopia.org/)
The George Lucas Educational Foundation’s includes video clips highlighting exemplary projects.
Great Student Work (http://www.bobpearlman.org/BestPractices/StudentWork.htm)
Educational reform expert Bob Pearlman offers links to exceptional project examples and assessments from around the globe.
Project-Based Learning Resources
The Buck Institute for Education (http://www.bie.org/)
The website offers an outstanding primer on all aspects of PBL, including design, implementation, assessment tools, and examples of quality projects.
WestEd PBL Network (http://www.pblnet.org/)
A national network of schools and resources focused on PBL produces this support site.
International Education and Research Network (iEARN - Canada) (http://www.iearn-canada.org/guideontheside.html)
A vast array of PBL-related topics, examples, tools, and ideas for teachers is provided by the Canadian chapter of the iEARN network.
Global Schoolhouse (http://www.gsn.org/web/pbl/pedagog.htm)
This site includes a great synthesis of PBL information, as well as opportunities for teachers to become involved in projects around the world.
Project-Based Learning Training
Swanson & Cosgrave Consulting (http://www.swansonandcosgrave.com)
With over 25 years of PBL teaching and training experience, this team of educators provides customized PBL training for schools and districts.
The Buck Institute for Education (http://www.bie.org/pbl/training/index.php)
This California-based foundation provides K-12 training as well as problem-based learning workshops for economics educators.
Leslie A. Texas (texasconsulting@bellsouth.net)
A teacher trainer with deep experience in math and science, Leslie Texas is known for engaging PBL seminars.
PBL EXAMPLES AND LINKS
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Project-Based Learning Guide
Project Design
Designing projects that are rigorous and relevant is no simple feat. To ensure that instructional time spent on projects is worthwhile, teachers need a design framework that enables them to think through the many levels of standards, skills, and other course objectives that their PBL experience will address. One such framework is the “simultaneous outcomes” model. This complex overview of project learning outcomes, adapted from the work of Dr. Art Costa and Dr. Bena Kallick, provides a powerful argument for the use of sophisticated instructional methods such as project-based learning.
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Framework Overview
When applied to PBL design, the simultaneous outcomes framework shows how teachers can create projects that operate on several levels at the same time. The best projects skillfully weave together opportunities for students to engage in classroom activities (Level 1) that address content standards (Level 2) while encouraging them to develop habits of mind (Level 3) and the ability to take responsibility of their own learning (Level 4). Below are detailed descriptions of each design level.
Outcome Level Descriptors
Level 1: Classroom Activities
At the most basic level, teachers involve students in activities that determine how they spend their time in school. Teachers must ensure that activities are engaging and aligned to the next three outcome levels. Good classroom activities provide a context for learning and help students to understand key academic concepts. In addition, well-designed activities allow students to practice the process and thinking skills needed, such as comparing, analyzing, and evaluating.
Key project design questions:
•
What will students do as part of this lesson or project?
Examples:
•
Read an article
•
Work in a group to write a script
•
Edit a video
PROJECT DESIGN
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Project-Based Learning Guide
Level 2: Content Standards
The activities planned on Level 1 must help students to learn the concepts and skills from course content standards (Level 2). It must be noted that the current focus on accountability, testing, and standards puts tremendous pressure on teachers to emphasize – and stay – at this level of instructional design, despite the essential learning that lies in the next two levels.
Key project design questions:
• What are the essential concepts and skills that I want students to learn during this project?
•
What will I accept as evidence that they have learned it?
Examples:
•
Concepts that come from the heart of the discipline, such as cell division, federalism, credits vs. debits
•
Evidence of learning credits vs. debits might include designing an accounting spreadsheet and entering receipts and accounts payable data for a real or simulated business
Level 3: Habits of Mind
The third outcome level addresses the habits of mind, a set of “intelligent behaviors” that all people exhibit when they’re acting intelligently (also developed by Costa and Kallick). Teachers and university scholars often cite these 16 habits as the most critical outcomes of all.
Key project design questions:
•
Which habits of mind do I want students to develop during this project?
Examples:
•
Flexibility in thinking
•
Metacognition
•
Persisting
Level 4: Self-Directed Learning
Finally, the outmost level addresses self-directed learning and the skills students can transfer to all aspects of their life. Ultimately, teachers create project opportunities to teach students to learn on their own in all sorts of contexts and settings.
Key project design questions:
•
What will students ultimately learn about their learning as a result of this project?
Examples:
•
Self-managing – teaching students to organize their own time and resources
•
Self-monitoring – teaching students to evaluate their own progress and work quality
•
Self-modifying – teaching students to make their own changes and adaptations
Links
Learn more about Costa and Kallick’s Habits of Mind at the official HOM website. (http://www.habits-of-mind.net/)
PROJECT DESIGN
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Project-Based Learning Guide
The Six A’s of Project-Based Learning
The Six A’s constitute a powerful list of features that are present in high-quality classroom projects. Many teachers use these six factors as a quality check during the project design process. The Six A’s were first developed by Adria Steinberg of Jobs for the Future. Click on highlighted titles to learn more about incorporating each feature into project plans.
1. AUTHENTICITY
Projects designed with authenticity infuse student work with purpose and passion by connecting project work to real-world issues that students care about.
2. ACADEMIC RIGOR
Projects that feature academic rigor challenge students to fully engage their minds by mastering content standards and using professional-level thinking skills.
3. ADULT CONNECTIONS
Projects that incorporate adult connections support and inspire students through the meaningful involvement of adults beyond the classroom.
4. ACTIVE EXPLORATION
Projects with active exploration engage the bodies and minds of students through hands-on, field-based work.
5. APPLIED LEARNING
Projects that integrate applied learning push students to use their learning right away and to practice important skills demanded by the workplace.
6. ASSESSMENT PRACTICES
Projects with quality assessment practices provide opportunities for students to receive relevant feedback during and after their project work.
Links
The Six A’s Rubric from the Buck Institute for Education assesses project designs against Six A’s criteria. (http://pearsonfoundation.org/NAF/downloads/SixAsProjectDesignRubric.pdf)
Adria Steinberg’s book Real Learning, Real Work first identified the Six A’s in 1998. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/041591793X/104-2992838-7883901?v=glance&n=283155)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING
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Project-Based Learning Guide
Authenticity
Arguably the most critical of the Six A’s elements, authenticity infuses student work with purpose and passion. Projects that feature authenticity:
•
Solve a problem or question that has meaning to the student.
•
Involve a problem or question is actually tackled by adults at work or in the community.
•
Require students to produce something that has personal and/or social value beyond the classroom.
Part of the secret to designing authentic projects is to ensure that there is a real-world use for the products or services that students produce. Traditionally, most student work is created for the insulated world of the classroom and is rarely seen by anyone except a teacher. In contrast, authentic projects seek to create work that fills needs or interests in the broader school, community, or world. And, by wrapping course content around truly relevant issues and challenges, teachers can ensure that learning takes place within a meaningful – and memorable – context. Students engaged in truly authentic projects don’t ask the question, “Why do we need to know this?”
Examples of projects that feature authenticity
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Students teach workshops on
TECHNOLOGY
Students assist school staff in
predatory lending practices
Student teams provide
planning their actual vacation
to parents and community
networking services to needy
travel.
members who are targeted by
community entities such as
lending scams.
nonprofit agencies.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students study and practice
Students study local
Students use their
specific painting techniques,
development issues and
computational skills to calculate
develop lesson plans,
use their written and oral
the surface area of buildings at
and teach the techniques
communication skills to
their school that are scheduled
to students at a local
develop persuasive essays and
to be painted at an upcoming
elementary school.
presentations that are shared
volunteer work day. Their
with government officials.
findings are used to determine
the amount of paint needed for
the job.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Students conduct research
Students conduct research
Students use their language
about how lifestyle choices
on historical issues that have
skills to provide basic
contribute to health problems
local significance and prepare
translation services to
found in their community
informative museum exhibits
immigrant families in the
and develop informational
that are displayed at local
community who need
brochures aimed at teaching
businesses and community
assistance in dealing with
others how to stay healthy.
display cases.
school officials, employers, etc.
Links
The Virtual Schoolhouse documents exemplary K-12 projects that reflect a range of school, district, and classroom models. (http://virtualschoolhouse.visionlink.org/pbl.htm)
UC Berkeley’s Urban Plan Project site shows how UC students pair with inner-city high school kids to learn urban planning and present their ideas to the various commissions and communities they impact. (http://citiesandschools.berkeley.edu/)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: AUTHENTICITY
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Project-Based Learning Guide
Academic Rigor
When projects feature academic rigor, students face challenges that fully engage their minds. Academically rigorous projects:
•
Lead students to master and apply content standards and knowledge central to one or more disciplines or content areas.
•
Challenge students to use methods of inquiry central to one or more disciplines (for example, to think like a scientist, historian, etc.).
•
Require students to develop higher-order thinking skills and habits of mind (for example, searching for evidence, taking different perspectives).
Designing academically rigorous projects requires teachers to build in opportunities for students to wrestle with big ideas and produce clear evidence that they have mastered content standards. Ensuring rigor may also mean that favorite activities – such as producing artistic products that are all “sizzle” but no “steak” – may need to be altered or abandoned in favor of more authentic demonstrations of learning. Some experienced PBL teachers use essential questions to help focus their projects on issues that require significant intellectual work.
Examples of projects that feature academic rigor
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Students create print and
TECHNOLOGY
Student teams create an
web-based financial literacy
Student teams develop “how-
informational website for
materials for use with other
to” manuals explaining how
students interested in careers
students and young adults.
to set up and troubleshoot a
in hospitality and tourism.
computer network.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students apply learning
Students write, edit, and
Students use their
about playwriting and
produce a school paper or
understanding of trigonometry
dramatic genres by writing
newsletter.
to calculate the height of
and producing short scenes
buildings.
that reflect different styles.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Students analyze the quality
Students conduct oral
Students write, edit, and
of city drinking water and
interviews with Vietnam
publish a newspaper or
produce, present, and defend
veterans and write papers
newsletter in the language
their report in front of a panel
comparing the vets’
they are studying.
of local scientists and city
experiences with accounts
officials.
found in their history texts.
Links
The Standards for University Success are a carefully designed set of standards for incoming college freshmen and can form the basis of deep and meaningful projects. (http://www.s4s.org/cepr.s4s.overview.php)
Mt. Diablo High School’s Digital Safari shows several projects aligned to California state standards. (http://72.18.226.120/dsweb/)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: ACADEMIC RIGOR
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Project-Based Learning Guide
Adult Connections
Powerful project-based learning experiences require meaningful involvement from adults beyond the classroom. Projects that feature adult connections:
•
Allow students to meet and observe adults with relevant expertise and experience.
•
Give students an opportunity to work closely with at least one adult.
•
Ask adults to collaborate on the design and assessment of student work.
While teachers still play the pivotal role in PBL experiences, the best projects also involve other adults from the broader school community. These individuals can support the project in a variety of different capacities, including guest speaker, content expert, interviewee, mentor, project coordinator, guest artist, client, and presentation audience member. Some projects involve multiple adults serving in several of these roles. For project designers, the key is to find opportunities for meaningful, personalized contact between students and adults committed to their learning and growth.
Examples of projects that feature adult connections
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Student teams work with
TECHNOLOGY
Students interview managers
employer partner mentors to
District IT staff reviews student
in different sectors of the
develop balanced portfolios
drafts of school networking
hospitality and tourism
for prospective investors.
plans and provides feedback
industry to learn about
on how to improve the plans.
effective leadership strategies.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students work with a local
Writers and editors from the
Students interview employees
guest artist to produce an art
local newspaper staff act as
from local companies to
exhibit on homelessness in
guest speakers in a journalism
discover how math skills are
the community.
class that produces a monthly
used on a daily basis in a
paper.
variety of jobs.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Scientists from a local
Students in a government class
Students serve as interpreters
university act as project
poll local voters to determine
for parents and community
mentors for student teams
their views on key issues in an
members at important school
researching native plant
upcoming election.
events.
species.
Links
Read the American Institute of Biological Sciences’ case study on mentoring at the high school level. (http://www.aibs.org/eye-on-education/eye_on_education_2005_07.html)
UC Berkeley’s Career Academy Support Network (CASN) offers an online Mentor Handbook that includes templates and other practical tools for formally working with adults beyond the classroom. (http://casn.berkeley.edu/resources/mentor_handbook.html)
MentorNet’s site helps connect mentors with high school science and engineering students. (http://www.mentornet.net/Documents/About/Programs/one_on_one.aspx)
Oregon Mentors is an example of a statewide consortium to provide mentors for classroom and internship work. (http://www.ormentors.org/)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: ADULT CONNECTIONS
page 17
Project-Based Learning Guide
Active Exploration
Great projects involve students in active, hands-on work that engages their bodies and minds. Projects that feature active exploration:
•
Ask students to spend significant amounts of time doing field-based work.
•
Require students to engage in real investigation, using a variety of methods, media, and sources.
•
Expect students to communicate what they are learning through formal exhibitions.
Exemplary project designs demand that students move beyond the role of passive recipient of knowledge. Instead, students are required to actively question, research, explore, analyze, and present. They literally get their hands and feet involved in the work of the project – and in doing so, they are required to use different modes of thinking and learning. Students engaged in active exploration tap into resources and opportunities beyond the walls of the classroom, and are enriched by the experience.
Examples of projects that feature active exploration
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Students interview local small
TECHNOLOGY
Students work with a local
business owners to develop
Student teams develop
hotel to develop and deliver
case studies for a report on
websites for nonprofit agencies
training workshops for new
entrepreneurship strategies.
in the community.
employees.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students write, rehearse, and
Students read a variety of
Students survey their
perform an original dramatic
technical manuals, then write
classmates on a variety of
work.
their own technical article
current issues and produce
describing how to complete a
a thorough and accurate
task on the computer.
statistical analysis of the data.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Students use proper scientific
Student teams conduct original
Students work with native
sampling techniques as they
research on a local historical
speakers of the language
study the impact of non-native
event through interviews and
they are studying to create a
insect species on their local
examination of official public
dictionary of conversational
ecosystem.
records.
slang.
Links
The What Kids Can Do site features many student “action research” projects that have impacted the community and has powerful examples of student work (Fires in the Bathroom) and processes (Students as Allies in the Work). (http://www.whatkidscando.org/index.asp)
This template for the Boston Public Schools’ Signature Projects shows how all seniors must create a project that includes active exploration as a key component of the work. (http://boston.k12.ma.us/stc/signature.htm)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: ACTIVE EXPLORATION
page 18
Project-Based Learning Guide
Applied Learning
The best PBL designs push students to use new learning right away and to practice important skills demanded by the workplace. Projects that feature applied learning:
•
Involve learning that takes place in the context of a semi-structured problem, grounded in real-world issues and settings.
•
Lead students to acquire and use competencies expected in high-performance work organizations (for example, teamwork, problem solving, and communications).
•
Require students to develop organizational and self-management skills.
Exemplary PBL designs develop deep student learning on multiple levels, as suggested by the simultaneous outcomes model (page 12). The first part of this design challenge is to intentionally and explicitly layer content standards, thinking skills, habits of mind, and lifelong learning aptitudes into the project. The second challenge is to plan experiences that require students to immediately use their newly acquired content and skills to solve a problem or challenge. This applied and “just-in-time” model not only builds in student engagement; it also helps to cement and deepen learning.
Examples of projects that feature applied learning
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Students use accounting
TECHNOLOGY
Students employ event
skills to help set up a financial
Student teams use teamwork
management and food
record-keeping system for the
techniques and problem-
preparation techniques to host
school store.
solving protocols to
an all-sports banquet for the
troubleshoot case study
school.
network malfunctions.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students use their
Students use persuasive writing
Students analyze traffic
understanding of all aspects
techniques to petition the
patterns and use problem-
of the industry to operate
school board to support district
solving skills to develop
a student-run production
policy changes of interest.
models and solutions to traffic
company.
congestion.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Students use their
Students use their
Students use newly acquired
understanding of the causes
understanding of U.S.
second-language skills to
and effects of flooding to
immigration trends and laws to
interview native speakers
sponsor a town hall meeting
develop and present potential
about their cultural heritage.
on how to prevent future flood
policy solutions to current
damage in the community.
immigration debates.
Links
Learn more about applying essential workplace skills from the SCANS Report. (http://wdr.doleta.gov/SCANS/)
New Horizons for Learning offers definitions and examples of applied learning. (http://www.newhorizons.org/strategies/applied_learning/front_applied.htm)
The Center for Educational Networking site discusses applied learning skills necessary for twenty-first-century school, career, and citizenship success. (http://www.cenmi.org/LeadingChange/Sp06/article5b.asp)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: APPLIED LEARNING
page 19
Project-Based Learning Guide
Assessment Practices
No PBL experience is complete without opportunities for students to receive quality feedback during and after their project work. Projects that feature excellent assessment practices:
•
Ask students to regularly reflect on their learning using clear project criteria that they helped to set.
•
Involve adults from outside the classroom to evaluate student work and help students develop a sense of real-world standards.
•
Provide opportunities for ongoing assessment of student work through a range of methods, including exhibitions and portfolios.
Quality project assessment involves both formative and summative feedback. During the project, students reflect on their own progress, receive formative feedback from peers and teachers, and have opportunities to improve their work and address issues raised by reviewers. At the end of the project, summative evaluations of student products and performances are provided by teachers and other adults who judge student work in relation to predetermined quality indicators as described on project rubrics.
Examples of projects that feature assessment practices
FINANCE
INFORMATION
HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM
Student team PowerPoint
TECHNOLOGY
Students participate in mock
presentations on key economic
Student teams create a web-
interviews in front of district
concepts are rehearsed in front
based electronic magazine.
personnel staff. Students
of peer reviewers and graded
Articles are reviewed by a
write up reflections on their
on a rubric by a panel of
language arts teacher, while
performance and debrief
employer partners.
technical aspects are reviewed
the experience with their
by a technology teacher.
interviewers.
FINE ARTS
LANGUAGE ARTS
MATH
Students work with the
Students complete multiple
Student teams prepare solutions
teacher to develop rubric
drafts of a research paper
to complex mathematical
criteria and descriptors for
focusing on a current issue
scenarios, then receive critical
a sculpture project, then
of interest. Students receive
feedback from other teams
use the rubric to provide
feedback on each draft from
working on different problems.
feedback to their peers.
a different source: peers,
Final presentations include
parents, employer partners,
evaluations of the group
and the teacher.
process.
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
WORLD LANGUAGES
Students work with real
Student teams studying
Students prepare and
scientists to develop criteria
twentieth-century social
deliver oral presentations
for assessing experimental
revolutions in the United States
in a second language. After
methods, then conduct
write research papers, create
the presentation, students
experiments and evaluate their
video documentaries, and deliver
view a video recording
process using those criteria.
informational teaching sessions.
of their performance and
Students receive formative
write a formal evaluation of
feedback on each product, and
their language and delivery
final versions are evaluated using
based on a speaking and
rubrics distributed at the outset
presentation rubric.
of the project.
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: ASSESSMENT PRACTICES
page 20
Project-Based Learning Guide
Links
The 4Teachers site offers checklists for teachers to use while designing PBL experiences. (http://pblchecklist.4teachers.org/checklist.shtml)
Northwest Regional Education Laboratory describes assessment of a project-based learning experience on their site. (http://www.nwrel.org/request/2002aug/assessment.html)
Kathy Schrock’s extensive site for best practices in teaching and learning features an assessment section with authentic tools and prompts for teachers to adapt or adopt. (http://school.discovery.com/ schrockguide/assess.html)
The Coalition for Essential Schools has extensive resources for all assessment practices. (http://www.essentialschools.org/pub/ces_docs/resources/cp/assess/assess.html)
Looking at Student Work is dedicated to processes and protocols for examining the work students are creating in the classroom. Is the evidence sufficient to demonstrate learning? How do we know? (http://www.lasw.org/)
THE SIX A’S OF PROJECT- BASED LEARNING: ASSESSMENT PRACTICES
page 21
Project-Based Learning Guide
Project Delivery
How can teachers ensure that their students will succeed in complex project work? Part of the answer lies in providing students with the supports needed to complete the task. Like real scaffolds that support people who work on buildings high above the ground, “project scaffolding” refers to the time, tools, and training students need in order to succeed during the risky business of project work.
Below are several key scaffolds that teachers must consider when implementing sophisticated classroom projects.
Types of Project Scaffolding
SCAFFOLD
DESCRIPTION
EXAMPLES
Structure
Critical organizing features of the
• Students split into project teams or
project that determine who does
groups.
what and when.
• Each team investigates a different health
topic, but all create a public service video.
Content
Any classroom activity that covers the
• Interactive lecture on customer service.
foundational topics, concepts, and
• Reading and discussion on how
standards that students need to know
computer networks are structured.
for the project.
Training
Explicit skill-building for students
• Modeling of key steps in creating a
in group work and all required
PowerPoint presentation.
production areas.
• Explicit group communication training.
Expertise
Professional-level training and
• Guest artist teaches students how to set
consultation provided by outside
up lighting for a video shoot.
experts or adults in the community.
• Marketing executive helps students
improve text phrasing for a website.
Oversight
Structured times for teachers to meet,
• Teacher informally interviews each
motivate, and mentor student teams.
student team during project workdays.
• Project teams give progress report to
teacher halfway through project.
Documents
Handouts to help explain and
• Project descriptors and calendars.
organize project.
• Project rubrics, deadlines, check sheets.
Tools
The technological resources necessary
• Computers, software, video cameras.
to produce required products.
• Display boards, scissors, glue, paper.
Time
In-class opportunities for students to
• Thirty minutes of project time each day.
meet, research, produce, exhibit, and
• Designated “project days” – extended
evaluate.
periods of time for student project work.
PROJECT DELIVERY
page 22
Project-Based Learning Guide
Project Implementation Tools
Below are links to tools and templates that can assist teachers in designing and delivering quality projects.
Project Design Template (http://pearsonfoundation.org/NAF/downloads/SixAsDesignTemplate.pdf) This comprehensive template leads teachers through key elements of the project design process.
Project Rubric Templates (http://www.bie.org/pbl/pblhandbook/BIE_PBLrubrics.pdf)
This tool from the Buck Institute for Education helps teachers develop rubrics for assessing different aspects of project work.
Links
The Coalition of Essential Schools’ guide to scaffolding can help teachers support project learning. (http://www.essentialschools.org/cs/resources/view/ces_res/85)
PROJECT DELIVERY
page 23
