Blog Post #9

What Can Teachers and Students Teach Us about Project Based Learning?

Seven Essentials for Project Based Learning

I encourage all educators to read this article about Project Based Learning. I learned a lot of new information about the importance of PBL and how to create a meaningful project. The article explains the difference between dreadful "busywork" and a meaningful project. In order to have an effective project, certain criteria must be met. For instance, a good project should make students want to do well and fulfill an educational purpose. There are seven essentials for Project Based Learning, which I will be summarizing below.

1) Need To Know
The article states that a good project should have an "entry event." The purpose of this is to engage student interest and encourage questions. An "entry event" can be anything from a video to a guest speaker. The sky is the limit, so get creative! You want your students to understand the purpose of the assignment and feel excited about the work they have created.

2) A Driving Question
As I mentioned above, it is important for students to have a sense of purpose when creating a project. One way to ensure a purpose-driven assignment is by asking a good question. A driving question "captures the heart of the project." I think the article sums it up perfectly when it says, "The question should be provocative, open-ended, complex, and linked to the core of what you want students to learn."

3) Student Voice and Choice
I believe this is also a very important element in Project Based Learning. When we allow the students to make choices regarding their final product, they feel a greater sense of pride and accomplishment. By allowing them to choose how to design, create, or present their project, we are encouraging rather than limiting their creativity.

4) 21st Century Skills
It is also crucial to incorporate 21st century skills such as collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and use of technology into the Project Based Learning curriculum. The article explains how important these skills are in the workplace, which is why we should be instilling them into our students at an early age.

5) Inquiry and Innovation
"Students follow a trail that begins with their own questions, leads to a search for resources and the discovery of answers, and often ultimately leads to generating new questions, testing ideas, and drawing their own conclusions." I think this statement summarizes Project Based Learning perfectly. We want our students to be excited about asking questions, finding answers, and able to draw conclusions independently.

6) Feedback and Revision
This element of PBL emphasizes creating high-quality work. It explains the importance of revising and accepting feedback. Most work classified as "high-quality" has been edited, reviewed, and revised several times. As educators, we should teach our students how to follow a rubric and peer review. These skills will be extremely necessary once they enter the workplace.

7) A Publicly Presented Product
When projects are presented publicly, the students care more about the quality. If they know a large audience will be viewing their work, they tend to put more time and effort into the assignment. By presenting the work to a public audience, our students will have a sense of purpose.


Project Based Learning for Teachers This short video by Tony Vincent shares a great overview of the standards for Project Based Learning. In the video, he includes the qualities of Common Core Standards and Project Based Learning along with different skills students will learn, which I have listed below.

Common Core Standards- The "What"
- Rigorous content
- Aligned with college and work expectations
- Clear and understandable
- Application of knowledge
- Evidence-based

Project Based Learning- The "How"
- Inquiry based
- Open-ended
- Problem solving
- Personalized
Project Based Learning also includes "having a purpose, addressing an audience, crafting a driving question, identifying learning standards, creating a rubric, grouping students, brainstorming branching questions, meeting deadlines, and focusing on the process."

Skills Developed by Students
1) Collaboration Skills
2) Communication Skills
3) Critical Thinking Skills
4) Career and Life Skills
What Motivates Students Today
This super cute video offers a look into the perspectives of students. I think it is extremely important to listen to the feedback from students in your classroom. You have to know what works well, what doesn't work, and how you can adapt. The students in this video were asked to discuss the different reasons they are motivated to do well in school. They replied with acknowledgement from the teacher, good future, successful career, and college. My favorite answer had to be the little boy who simply said, "I don't want to be grounded." The students were also asked to discuss the rewards that work. These answers included surprises, eating lunch with the teacher, candy, working outside, school supplies, food, stickers, and "brownie points." I loved this video, and I think interviewing the students is a great way to receive necessary feedback.

Two Students Solve the Case of the Watery Ketchup by Designing a New Cap
I thought this video was super creative. Two North Liberty High School seniors, Tyler Richards and Jonathan Thompson, came up with the idea for this project when given the prompt, "It really bugs me when..." They were tired of the watery substance ruining their food, so they each put their problem-solving skills to the test. They demonstrate everything that Project Based Learning is about in this video. They collaborated, used technology to design a new cap, and solved a real-world problem. I believe this project turned out great, because the students were so invested. As educators, we should be creating projects that get our students as excited about learning as these seniors.

Project Based Learning in PE
I never thought of connecting Project Based Learning to PE. When I think of PBL, I automatically think of a typical classroom. Certain standards must be met for Physical Education just like standards for Math, Reading, Social Studies, Science, etc. In this blog post, the different PE standards are discussed along with a project example. For the project, high school students were given the task of creating a physical fitness plan for middle school students. I think this is a great way to incorporate all of the standards, and it seems like a project the students would enjoy. From this blog post, I learned that Project Based Learning can really be implemented in any subject.