5 tips for getting started with project-based learning
- Posted by Marianne Stenger |
- Thursday 9 March 2017, 12:25 PM (EST)
Although you’ve undoubtedly heard about project-based learning and its potential to help students take ownership of their learning, using it in the classroom for the first time can be a daunting prospect. Education writer Marianne Stenger offers some easy ways to get started.
At its most basic, project-based learning (PBL) requires students to identify and develop solutions to real-world problems. Its biggest benefit is its ability to help students connect what they’re learning to the real world and learn how to apply it in their future studies, careers or even hobbies.
Research shows that students who use project-based learning retain content longer and have a deeper understanding of what they’re learning. It’s also been shown to help students master important 21st century skills like problem solving, critical thinking, conflict resolution and teamwork.
So given the potential benefits, how can you get started with project-based learning in your classroom?
Obviously, before you can start implementing PBL, you need to have a clear understanding of what it is and how it differs from regular classroom projects. Once you have a handle on it, though, here are a few tips for putting it into action.
1. Start with something small
When you’re just starting out, it’s usually better to stay in your comfort zone by designing smaller projects and writing simpler driving questions. For instance, “What can we do to reduce food waste at school?” would be simpler than “What can we do to reduce our carbon footprint?”
If you start off too big too soon, it will not only be overwhelming for you, but your students may become discouraged if they can’t solve the problem within the given timeframe. Starting with something smaller will give both you and your students a chance to ease into it and figure out what works best.
Once your students feel more confident conducting their own research and solving real-world problems, you can start designing bigger projects or writing driving questions that cover more than one subject area and have multiple solutions.
2. Make it engaging and relevant
Whether you’re designing a large project or a relatively simple one, the driving question needs to be engaging and in some way relevant, because the more relevant it is to your students’ lives, the easier it will be to spark their curiosity and motivate them to find answers.
When you’re writing the driving question, think about what kinds of problems or situations your students face in their everyday lives, whether in the classroom, their local community or at home.
For example, a teacher wants to develop a project on micro-organisms, so he sparks his students’ curiosity by asking them why they think so many of their classmates have recently fallen ill. The students then discuss the issue and come up with their own list of things they want to know.
3. Set clear goals and expectations
Before you get started with a project, it’s important to have clear goals and learning outcomes in mind. So think about what skills your students should be using or developing throughout the project and set some clear goals with them.
It can also be helpful to let your students know how they will be assessed and what specific skills you’ll be looking for. You can also show them examples of high quality work so they’ll have a better idea of what will be expected of them.
4. Provide frequent feedback
Feedback is essential to the learning process, but when it’s provided only at the end of a project, it’s often too late to be of much use. This is especially true with project-based learning because students need ongoing guidance in order to keep the project on track and reach their goals.
Remember that feedback doesn’t always need to take the form of grading; you could have regular class discussions, use apps like Google Drive or OneDrive to provide ongoing feedback that can be implemented as the project progresses, or even have different student groups critique each other’s work.
5. Get help
Although it’s natural to feel a bit overwhelmed when you’re first starting out, it can help to remember that you’re not alone and that many other teachers have been exactly where you are now.
Start by following some of the education websites and blogs that discuss project-based learning in-depth and read firsthand accounts from teachers who are successfully implementing it in their classrooms. Some good sources of information on PBL include the NSW Department of Education and Edutopia.
Finally, whether you’re struggling with its implementation or just need some new ideas or inspiration, it can be helpful to connect with other teachers who are in the same boat. To do this, you can try online communities like Edmodo, and use Twitter to track hashtags like #PBL and #PBLChat.
Join the discussion! Leave a comment below.
13 March 2017, 12:11 AM (EST)
I have a strong belief that mathematics should be taught through clarification of fundamental concepts, theorems, hypothesis and most importantly practice. Physics and chemistry are similar but could have projects (and lab work) for better understanding and application of concepts to solve problems. Year 9 and above students must spend atleast 2 hours after school to revise what they have been taught in school and solve problems at home.