2. BIE: Who We Are
BIE is dedicated to improving 21st Century teaching and
learning by creating and disseminating knowledge,
products, and practices for effective Project Based
Learning
Non-profit located near San Francisco
Workshops and partners in over 30 states and 6
countries
www.bie.org
www.pbl-online.org
PBL Handbook and PBL Toolkit series, and project based
curriculum units for high school Economics and U.S.
Government
3. PBL Double Session Today
9:30 PBL What & Why; Generate ideas
and review sample projects for
global education
11:00 Planning & Managing your
project; Driving Questions;
assessment; classroom tips
5. Begin with the end in mind
Critical thinker/problem-solver
Knowledge of science, history,
literature, languages, etc. Appreciates diversity
Time management Global awareness
Strong work ethic Technology literacy
Respectful & Caring Communication skills
Organized
Works independently and
Reading/writing/math skills collaboratively
Responsible
Healthy lifestyle
6. Everybody is saying the same thing
Partnership for 21st Century Skills
enGauge 21st Century Skills
Tony Wagner’s Seven Survival Skills for the
21st Century
OECD Framework for Key Competencies
7. And remember
Career-tech skills / 21st century skills / habits of
success need to be developed while building
students’ content knowledge
To stay engaged in school, students need to care
about learning – by being given meaningful work
Relationships count – more personalized teaching
should lead to more rigorous work
8. Sample PBL Unit
Geography Course Culminating
Project: “Travel Website”
(From the National Academy Foundation/Pearson Education)
Read and discuss with 1-2 partners:
How could this project improve
student engagement and outcomes?
9. Why PBL? A summary
Motivates students to learn
Improves retention of knowledge
Teaches applied learning / 21st century skills
Connects school to real world
Makes school more meaningful = fewer
disengaged students
10. Activity-based teaching
vs. PBL
Activity-based teaching PBL
Enjoyable; active, hands-on Engaging (emotionally and
learning intellectually); “heads-on”
Focused on theme, concept, Driving question, problem or
time period, novel, topic, challenge
culture, textbook chapter
“we do projects” = curricular Project organizes curriculum
add-on (“dessert”) & instruction (“main course”)
Assessment = product Product and process
School world Real world
11. Essential elements
of PBL
A project, in PBL:
is organized around an open-ended
Driving Question, problem, or challenge
creates a need to know essential content & skills
requires inquiry to learn and/or create something new
results in a publicly presented product or performance
allows student voice & choice
requires critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration and
various forms of communication
12. Activity-based teaching vs. PBL
Is it PBL?
Perform scenes from Macbeth and make collages of
symbols that represent major characters.
Listen to different sounds. Make a graph. Identify
features of common sounds that are disturbing to the ear.
Write a research report on a Renaissance artist, build
a model of a device from a da Vinci drawing, and
create a TV news video about a major event of the time.
Play various card and dice games to determine the
probability of winning.
13. From activities & “doing projects”
to PBL
From… To…
Perform scenes from Explore universal themes in
MacBeth and make MacBeth by writing and
collages of symbols performing key scenes in
that represent major modern English, in modern
characters. settings.
14. From activities & “doing projects”
to PBL
From… To…
Listen to different Identify five sound
sounds. Make a graph. pollution problems in the
Identify features of community. Form task
common sounds that forces to study the
are disturbing to the ear. problems and
recommend solutions.
15. From activities & “doing
projects” to PBL
From… To…
Write a research report Study various developments
on a Renaissance artist,
build a model of a device during the time period to
from a da Vinci drawing, support and present an
and create a TV news answer to the question, “Was
video about a major the Renaissance a rebirth or a
event of the time. whole new baby?”
16. From activities & “doing projects”
to PBL
From… To…
Plan a “Probability Booth” for
Play various card and the annual PTA fundraising
dice games to determine Carnival, with activities whose
odds of winning would attract
the odds of winning.
lots of players.
Determine how much money
it would cost to play, how
much winners receive, and
how much profit you expect.
17. “yeah, but …”
It’s not standards-based
I can’t cover enough material
My students aren’t ready
It’s loud and messy
I can’t use traditional teaching tools
There’s no individual accountability
I don’t have time and support
18. Designing & implementing a
project
Getting
Started
Planning &
Preparing
Reflect &
Perfect
Managing
19. Designing & implementing a
project
• Develop an idea
Getting • Specify learning goals
Started • Decide on the scope
• Write a Driving Question
Planning &
Preparing
Reflect &
Perfect
Managing
20. Pathways to Project Ideas
Real-world 21st Century
practice Skills
Community needs Standards
Project
Idea
Current issues & Curriculum
events materials
Your file
Student interests
cabinet
21. Developing an idea: what will students do?
Write a proposal Recommend a solution
Develop a plan Conduct a campaign
Design a website Produce a play
Publish a magazine Invent a device
Build a model Debate an issue
Create art Make a multimedia
presentation
make it authentic!
22. Your turn
Read the handout “Ideas for PBL:
Places to Start the Wheels Turning”
Discuss with 1-3 others how you
could adapt ideas from this list – or
think of your own potential projects
23. Specifying learning goals
Content standards:
Choose “power standards” (not too many)
21st century skills:
Collaboration, presentation, and critical
thinking in all projects
Some skills may be explicitly taught &
assessed; others may only be “encouraged”
24. Scope of a Project
Limited Ambitious
Duration 10-15 contact hours 40+ contact hours
Breadth One subject; 1-2 power Interdisciplinary; 3-4
standards power standards
Technology Basic Extensive
Setting Classroom Community/World
Who’s Involved One teacher Several teachers, outside
experts, community
Audience Classroom Experts, community,
world, web
Student Autonomy Teacher-defined; tightly Co-defined and
managed managed
25. Why have a Driving Question?
For teachers: For students:
• Guides planning • Creates interest and/or
the feeling of challenge
• Captures &
communicates the • Reminds them “Why
purpose of the project we’re doing this today”
• Initiates and focuses • Guides project work
inquiry
26. A Driving Question is...
Provocative or challenging
Understandable to students
Open-ended; multiple possible answers
Answerable (but not in a simple way)
Linked to important content in the discipline
27. A Driving Question can
be...
Abstract
“When is war justified?”
“Should we genetically modify organisms?”
“What makes someone a hero?”
Concrete
“How can we design the best networking plan for a business?”
“How can we use geometry to design holes for a miniature golf
course?”
Localized
“How could global warming affect our community?”
“Can we capture the spirit of our city in art, music and poetry?”
Activated
“How can we plan an effective campaign to prevent water pollution
in the lake?”
“How can we design a website for teenagers about books they like?”
28. Refining a DQ
From “simple right answer” to more complex, local, and
actively problem-solving:
What are the characteristics of healthy soil?
Is our soil healthy enough to support a
vegetable garden?
29. Refining a DQ
From abstract to concrete and challenging:
How do architects use geometry?
How can we design a theatre that
meets specifications with the greatest
number of seats?
30. Refining a DQ:
From “too big” to answerable:
How has technology affected world history?
Does technology make war more or less humane?
31. Refining a DQ:
From “sounds like a teacher” to student-friendly:
How does the author use voice and perspective in The
House on Mango Street to reflect on his childhood and
community?
How can childhood memories show who we are today?
32. Your turn
Working in table groups
(no more than 3-5 per group)
use the handout to select, refine or create a Driving Question.
Report Out Your group’s ideas/observations
33. A protocol for refining a
Driving Question
1. Is it “student-friendly”?
2. Is it open-ended and does it require a complex
answer, instead of one “right answer” or a simple yes
or no?
3. To answer it, will my students need to learn
important content knowledge and use 21st century
skills?
4. Does it allow me to create a local context for the
topic(s) under study or have students solve an
authentic / real problem? (Optional, but recommended
if possible)
35. Planning & preparing for a
project
Getting
Started
Planning &
Preparing
Reflect & • Entry event
Perfect • Culminating products &
presentations
• Teaching & learning activities
• Student groups
Managing
• Project calendar/checkpoints
36. Sample entry event
Task: Read the “Entry
Document” – the entry event
for a sample project.
Imagine you were a student:
what would you “need to
know” in order to do the task
presented?
37. Many ways to engage students & begin inquiry
• Field trip • Provocative reading
• Guest speaker • Startling statistics
• Film, video, • Puzzling problem
website
• Piece of real or mock
• Lively discussion correspondence
• Simulation or • Song, poem, art
activity
38. Culminating Products and Presentations
• Mix of individual and group products
• Make products as authentic as possible
• Public audience ups the stakes = higher quality
• Require students to share presentation duties
• Give audience members a role
39. Culminating Products and Presentations
• Avoid death-by-repetitive-presentations:
– Varied answers to DQ or solutions to problem
– Differentiate point of view / roles
– Same DQ but use varied texts, places, times, people,
cultures, etc.
– Choice of products / ways to present answer to DQ
40. Group Work in PBL
• Teacher chooses group members
• Heterogeneous groups
• Create a set of expectations for group work (e.g.,
collaboration rubric) and assess/grade it
• Group contracts (with a firing clause)
• Teach students project management skills: dividing
tasks, managing time, setting deadlines
• Regular check-ins
41. Planning when to teach what
(sample: entrepreneurship project)
Knowledge, Skills Already Taught Before Taught During
Needed for Product Learned Project Project
(Business Plan)
Format of business X
plan
Interviewing skills X
Editing skills X
Excel X
Projecting budgets X
44. Managing a project
Getting
Started
Planning &
Reflect Preparing
& Perfect
• Building a culture of inquiry & independence
• Beginning the inquiry process
• Managing group collaboration
• Keeping track of student work Managing
• Coaching the inquiry process
• Facilitating presentations to an audience
45. Best practices in
assessment
Create rich descriptors of criteria for your rubrics
Provide students with assessment criteria from the
start
Provide exemplars of quality work
Use formative assessments to give timely feedback
Capture process as well as product (e.g., work folders)
And, as a school...
Use common, calibrated rubrics; establish school-wide
criteria for grades
46. A critical balance
Summative
Group Tasks Self & Peer Evaluation
Balanced PBL Process Focused
Content Focused
Assessment (21st Century Skills)
Teacher Evaluation Individual Assignments
Formative
47. Rubrics in PBL
• A rubric for each major product in project
• Separate rubrics (or rows) for content
knowledge/skills and 21st century skills
• Checklists and rubrics – there is a big
difference
48. Grading in PBL
Give a grade for each product, not one grade
for the whole project
Mix of individual and group grades
Separate grades for content and 21st century
skills
49. Disaggregating data
Work Ethic Written Critical Content
Communi- Thinking Knowledge
cation
Nick 12/25 22/25 21/25 18/25
Pope
Rick 25/25 15/25 18/25 25/25
Lopez
50. Ways to assess process in PBL
21st century skill Assessment method
(a.k.a. Habits of (along with a rubric)
Success)
collaboration self report: journal, log, survey
peer report: survey or written reflection
teacher notes: observation checklist,
meetings with leaders
project management task lists
daily/weekly goal sheets
time logs
written explanation & reflection
problem-solving journal, log, written explanation &
reflection
51. 21st century skill assessment in PBL: collaboration
1. Think about a recent time when you
worked in a collaborative team
2. Share stories with 1-2 others
3. Score yourself on the collaboration
rubric
52. For further information
John Larmer
Director of Product Development
johnlarmer@bie.org
David Ross
Director of Professional Development
david@bie.org
415-883-0122