Blog Post #9 - What Can Teachers and Students Teach Us About Project Based Learning?

I believe that Project Based Learning requires continued learning for both teachers and students. I can learn information from students such as what types of projects excite them or what concepts they are not grasping that may benefit from a meaningful project. Teachers can also teach us what types of projects work. More importantly, I can learn from teachers exactly what is required of a meaningful project. I am currently working on a mock lesson plan for EDM 310, and I can certainly glean some valuable information from the following resources to help me keep my lesson plan meaningful.

Seven Essentials to Project Based Learning

John Larmer and John R. Mergendoller wrote an intriguing article on the Seven Essentials for Project Based Learning. In the intro they explain the difference between a project and a meaningful project. A meaningful project must be perceived by the students as personally meaningful while still fulfilling an educational purpose. Beyond that, meaningful projects also have seven essential elements: a need to know, a driving question, student voice and choice, 21st century skills, inquiry and innovation, feedback and revision, and a publicly presented project. Each of these elements is important. Without any one of them, projects can become mundane and seem like busy-work to students.

Project-Based Learning for Teachers

Tony Vincent created this video to get educators interested in learning about PBL. He defines Project Based Learning and effectively grabs the attention of teachers who want to do and be better. What stuck out to me the most was when I read that PBL requires an audience and a time of reflection. I want to make sure that as a teacher, I don't get caught up in the excitement of the projects and forget to give my students time to reflect. I also think it's important to give the students an audience. Knowing that your work will be on display generally encourages you to do your best work. Positive feedback will also boost self-esteem and the desire to do well (or even better) next time.

High School Teachers Meet the Challenges of PBL Implementation

Sammamish High School in Washington is working a five year plan to shift the entire school into Project Based Learning. Teachers are working together to change the curriculum in order to engage their students more. They were having trouble adding PBL to the math and English curricula. These are areas where PBL isn't as intuitive. I thought the way they chose to approach this problem was great. They asked themselves, "What do professionals in this discipline really do?" This is an interesting question because most people assume that all you can do with a math or english degree is teach. I was also intrigued by something one of the teachers said. She mentioned that a great way to get the teachers excited about the shift to PBL is to allow them to create their own lessons. This is exactly what they are doing with their students. Engaging them by giving them a voice.

PBL: What Motivates Students Today?

In this video, students are interviewed and asked what motivates them to do well in school. The answers range from positive recognition to a desire for future success. One child even says he wants to do well in school so that he will be able to play baseball, go swimming, and not be grounded. Some of the rewards that these students enjoy include a classroom money system, candy, being allowed to do classwork outside, fancy school supplies, and snacks. This was a great video to watch to get ideas on how to motivate my future students to do well.

Two Students Solve the Case of the Watery Ketchup by Designing a New Cap

This video is one of the best examples of an effective PBL project that I have seen. The only thing I can find wrong with it is that it is so broad. The challenge was to complete the sentence, "It really bugs me when..." and then try to find a solution to that problem. While this may meet standards for Project Lead the Way, it would probably have to be a little more refined for a typical classroom. It is a great way to make the project personal and to give students a heightened interest in the project. These two students, Tyler and Jonathan, found the problem of watery ketchup to be particularly annoying. They worked for a year to make sure that their project was unique and that they could find a solution, and they succeeded! They created a cost-efficient solution to the problem of watery ketchup.