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Project-Based Learning (PBL) (Workshop)

Project-based learning has students build real knowledge and skills by working over time toward an authentic product that answers a meaningful question. Done well it is rigorous and engaging. Done poorly it is a craft project with a grade. The difference is in the design.

Key takeaway

Strong PBL drives rigorous learning through a sustained, authentic project built around a meaningful question; the design is what separates real PBL from a fun activity with a grade.

Format
PLC / team meeting
Length
45 minutes
Group size
Any (works 4-40)
Who can run it
Any teacher-leader
You will need
Slides (5)Printed handoutContent worth a projectA timer
Aligned to
Learning Forward: Rigorous ContentInTASC 8: Instructional StrategiesGold Standard PBL (PBLWorks)
Share / assign

Why it works

Research and the Gold Standard PBL framework find that project-based learning raises engagement and can deepen understanding when projects are built around a challenging question, sustained inquiry, authenticity, student voice, and a public product, and when the content standards are embedded rather than bolted on. Weak projects give PBL its mixed reputation.

The research: PBLWorks Gold Standard PBL; research on project-based learning.

The run-of-show

Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.

    The core activity: design the core of a project

    Teachers leave with a driving question, an authentic product, and content embedded in the inquiry.

    Embed the standards in the projectStrong PBL is not content plus a project. It is content learned through the project. If you could remove the project and still teach the content the same way, it is not PBL.

    Facilitator notes

    Avoid the dessert projectA project tacked onto the end of a unit is not PBL. Design the project as the way students learn the content, with real inquiry.

    Adapt it

    Participant handout

    One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.

    K12 Academics · Professional Learning

    Project-Based Learning: design it right

    <b>Content through the project:</b> a driving question, an authentic product, standards embedded in the inquiry.

    1. The content worth a project:
    2. My driving question:
    3. The authentic product and audience:
    4. How students learn the content through the inquiry:
    5. My checkpoints and scaffolds:

    Make it stick

    Embed, do not bolt on:

    Common questions

    Isn't PBL just doing a project at the end of a unit?
    No. A dessert project caps content; PBL makes the project the vehicle for learning the content, through sustained inquiry toward an authentic product.
    Doesn't PBL sacrifice rigor and standards?
    Only when it is poorly designed. Strong PBL embeds the standards in the project and the inquiry, so students learn the content by doing the work.
    How long does a project take?
    Longer than a single lesson, often one to several weeks. The sustained time is part of what makes the learning deep.

    Go deeper

    Build it into a bigger day

    Workshop
    Inquiry-Based Learning
    Workshop
    Student Engagement & Motivation
    Workshop
    Objectives & Success Criteria