Sometimes we'll meet educators or parents who think that because their child is bringing projects home that they're doing PBL in their classes. This may not necessarily be true.
Projects are usually presented in the following fashion:
Students learn specific material by reading, finishing study guides, quizzes, or any number of approaches. At the culmination of their learning, they then select, or are assigned, a product or deliverable that they create to show what they learned. This deliverable could be a diorama, a speech, a newspaper, a video, or any number of wonderful things.
Project Based Learning is different because instead of learning and then doing, the students learn by doing.
Project Based Learning work is usually presented in the following fashion:
A teacher provides a challenge or scenario for the students to "hook" into. The challenge or scenario is presented in such a way that the student feels compelled to learn more about the topic. The students then set themselves to work to meet the challenge or solve the scenario, but must learn things in order to complete the challenge/scenario. For instance, a group might be challenged to create a Viking Ship museum display. As they set about creating that display, they find that they have to learn about the Vikings in order to create an accurate display.
Projects are learning and then doing, while Project Based Learning is learning by doing.
Projects are usually presented in the following fashion:
Students learn specific material by reading, finishing study guides, quizzes, or any number of approaches. At the culmination of their learning, they then select, or are assigned, a product or deliverable that they create to show what they learned. This deliverable could be a diorama, a speech, a newspaper, a video, or any number of wonderful things.
Project Based Learning is different because instead of learning and then doing, the students learn by doing.
Project Based Learning work is usually presented in the following fashion:
A teacher provides a challenge or scenario for the students to "hook" into. The challenge or scenario is presented in such a way that the student feels compelled to learn more about the topic. The students then set themselves to work to meet the challenge or solve the scenario, but must learn things in order to complete the challenge/scenario. For instance, a group might be challenged to create a Viking Ship museum display. As they set about creating that display, they find that they have to learn about the Vikings in order to create an accurate display.
Projects are learning and then doing, while Project Based Learning is learning by doing.