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Students “learn by doing” in this real-world approach to education.
Author
Chal Emery
Expert Reviewer
Jill Padfield
Published: August 24, 2023
Students “learn by doing” in this real-world approach to education.
Author
Chal Emery
Expert Reviewer
Jill Padfield
Published: August 24, 2023
Students “learn by doing” in this real-world approach to education.
Author
Chal Emery
Expert Reviewer
Jill Padfield
Published: August 24, 2023
Key takeaways
Most parents likely remember their childhood school projects: the feel of markers on poster boards or the sound scissors make while cutting through construction paper. These images recall fond memories of a project on some historical figure or the ins and outs of the mitochondria. Projects have long been a go-to for teachers. This is because they assess how well students understand the material, while also granting kids a chance to be creative and crafty. Project-based learning takes these experiences and expands on them in meaningful and inventive ways.
With project-based learning, students develop the skills necessary for tackling complex problems and tasks in the real world. Under the guidance of an attentive teacher, students produce projects of all shapes and sizes. More importantly, they also gain independence, time-management, and communication skills alongside the class curriculum.
Project-based learning builds on a foundation of core knowledge about a subject by asking students to answer a complex question or solve an intricate problem. These projects should be completed over an extended period of time, as they are multi-layered and complicated.
To complete these assignments, students must manage their time, conduct their own research, conference with teachers, collaborate with peers, and develop skills specific to the task.
For example, a science class is tasked with finding a local stream and assessing its health compared to other streams nearby. Students will take what they already know about aquatic ecosystems, and then embark upon this quest to learn even more. As a team, they will gain a more nuanced understanding of the steps in evaluating water quality.
Gathering information on their own, students will also learn how to work independently. Though teachers check in regularly and converse with students every step of the way, the students are the ones taking charge and “learning by doing.”
This approach to education is important because it resembles how many students will be expected to complete assignments in the real world. Higher-level jobs rarely ask workers to simply complete menial tasks for hours on end.
Instead, a boss may discuss how an employee or company can best adapt to a new industry challenge, or seek various ways to improve sales performance.
These assignments require workers to delineate, analyze, delegate, and much more—skills that simple one-off school assignments simply cannot develop. Project-based learning ensures that students adapt to a more realistic form of problem-solving, which in turn prepares them for future careers.
Multifaceted and initially intimidating, project-based learning can throw some people off at first. However, once you understand the core elements of this approach, you’ll understand quickly how valuable and enriching it can be.
All projects begin with a problem or a question. Project-based learning is much more open-ended and prioritizes inquiry and exploration, rather than tasking students with simply reporting on existing information or recreating something that’s already out there.
Because of such openness, students must ask questions which lead to other, bigger questions as they explore the intricacies of the topic at hand. While this initial experience can be daunting, pursuing answers to more and more specific questions deepens understanding of the topic while also developing inquiry skills.
Since these projects are so open-ended, students have unparalleled freedom to express themselves and explore what works best for them in the education world. Students may find that they work best with a color-coding system,highlighting the sources they find.
Others might prefer to stand at a whiteboard, sketching intricate flowcharts and bubble maps in order to brainstorm ideas and formulate solutions to new problems.
The topics in project-based learning are often open as well, so students can chase after topics they are personally interested in. This choice empowers students to not only learn more about what inspires them, but also encourages them to assume responsibility and ownership over the project.
As students continue with their projects, they will encounter challenges, obstacles, and setbacks. But these are all opportunities for reflection and revision! Consistent reflection asks students to document why they do what they do, which in turn makes the choices they make more deliberate and meaningful.
Revision, too, creates a more thoughtful assessment process by asking students to assess themselves and what they create. Only after thoroughly appraising how they are doing can students properly adapt and grow to increasingly challenging tasks.
At the end of all this hard work and determination, students must present their findings—just as they would at a lab or a business meeting. Students will express the initial curiosities or problems they set out to resolve, and use their reflections to recount the process. In the end, they will present a highly personalized and unique product that embodies their own skills and process.
This experience hones presentation and communication skills, while further instilling a sense of ownership within the student. At the end of the process, they get to show off everything they have accomplished and are rightfully applauded for all they have done.
With so much to offer, project-based learning seems like an easy choice. However, you cannot simply assign any old project and just sit back and wait for the results to pour in. A successful project requires purposeful and intentional planning, as well as consistent management, to ensure student success. Following these few basic steps will promote effective project-based learning.
Instructors looking to implement project-based learning in their classroom should begin with a few specific, concrete goals. What content are you looking to include? What skills do you expect students to harness during the project? Will students work in groups? How large will these groups be? No matter how you answer these questions, you should have a specific reason for why you are constructing the project a certain way.
Teachers need to communicate these goals and targeted skills with students as well, so they know what is expected of them from the start. Developing rubrics and checklists to document desired outcomes is an invaluable way to help students orient themselves during later steps in the process.
For instance, let’s say you want students to design the blueprint of a house so they can practice some of the geometry skills you have covered in class recently. You will need to provide guidelines such as: size, budget, formatting, etc. A rubric and assignment sheets detailing the targeted skills and outlining all expectations should be reviewed on day one.
Once you have your learning goals and outcomes planned out, you need to design a pathway that students can follow as they complete their projects. Even though students should have plenty of freedom in project-based learning, they still need structure, and breaking the task up into steps helps keep students on pace and well-oriented.
Try going through the process as you want your students to complete it. Keep the sequence of tasks simple, though, as dictating too many little steps can be overly restrictive and also suffocating for student and teacher alike.
Model for your students how to approach each step and provide examples and resources to aid in their planning. For example: the house layout project from earlier. Break down the process into steps and model the kinds of questions students will need to ask: What are the home buyers’ needs? What budget are we working with? What is the area of the lot where we would be building this house?
After setting expectations and explaining the project, you might think that teachers fade into the background, but with project-based learning that couldn’t be further from the truth. Aside from providing guidance as needed, you should converse often with students to check on progress.
You may also review student’s “reflection journals” as a way of checking their work and ensuring that they are on the right track. If you observe common issues or questions, feel free to address the class as a whole, and perhaps (re)teach content students appear to be struggling with.
In the end, you need a reliable way to assess the results of students’ projects. If you started off with a rubric, this part is quite simple—as long as the criteria on the rubric is well-realized and relevant to the project goals. You may also consider a presentation component as a part of the evaluation to add public speaking skills to the list of valuable lessons.
Since these projects can take weeks, use this opportunity to celebrate success and encourage students to feel pride in their work. You can host a showcase for other classes or display portions of different projects for community members to see. This social component adds a personal element for students, making the process even more memorable.
It can take a lot of work and planning to pull off, but project-based learning is certainly worth the effort. The experience is enriching for students and teachers alike.
When granted more agency in their education, many students come alive. Knowing they can make their own choices and are responsible for their own learning pushes students to engage much more than rigid seatwork.
Given the more free-form nature of project-based learning, students need to be able to adapt to all sorts of unexpected complications. Pair this need for adaptability with the multifaceted questions at the heart of these projects, and students will be solving problems and thinking critically on a near constant basis.
The need for collaboration in a group is self-evident, and if you assign specific roles within a group (or even task students with determining those roles themselves), you will see students pushing their social skills to new highs. Even in individual work, students will still have to engage with teachers as questions arise. To be successful, students will need to hone their communication skills and learn to work well with others.
The skills in project-based learning reward curiosity and critical thinking—two traits that empower students to keep investigating well beyond their school days.
As great as project-based learning is, it certainly comes with plenty of challenges.
Children are not born with the ability to manage time, and like any other skill, they will need help learning to allocate it. You will need to structure the process and provide guidance for how students should use their time. You will also need to hold students accountable for how they use their time so that they do not arrive at the deadline without anything to show for it.
How to combat those challenges
Devise timelines for students to follow and display effective time management strategies. Provide ample check-in conferences to gauge progress, and frequently speak to where students should be in the process.
Since each project will look a little different, grading these tasks can be tricky. You want to be fair and equitable with grading, while simultaneously not restricting what students can do too much.
How to combat those challenges
Skill and goal-based rubrics that students understand from the beginning ensure that everyone is on the same page. With a clear rubric, you can establish a system that will help you more consistently assess projects in a fair way aligned with the project goals.
Working on the same task for days or even weeks can burn some students out. In addition, students who are less motivated than their peers may struggle to stay focused and committed.
How to combat those challenges
Developing relationships with students is imperative for helping them through this process. They need to feel like you believe they can succeed and that you are ready and waiting to help whenever needed. You should also, along the way, celebrate successes publically. If a student finds an excellent research source, congratulate them. If a group is consistently on pace, brag about them. Make the task feel possible and worthwhile, and you will be able to keep students motivated. A little extrinsic motivation can go a long way, too. The promise of a pizza party at the end is quite inspiring.
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Communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity are the 4 C’s of project-based learning. Together, they represent the major skills and benefits of this approach.
The main goal of project-based learning is to help students learn skills and content by tackling questions and problems in a manner similar to how they will handle assignments in their careers.
A combination of rubrics, reflections, conferences, and presentations can help you assess all aspects of the product of project-based learning. Just remember that something that takes this long to complete should be assessed thoroughly.
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Chal Emery
Chal Emery graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor’s in Global History and Political Science. Outside of writing, he enjoys long drives through spectacular country, and spending time getting lost in a decent film.
Jill Padfield
Jill Padfield has 7 years of experience teaching high school mathematics, ranging from Alegra 1 to AP Calculas. She is currently working as a Business Analyst, working to improve services for Veterans while earning a masters degree in business administration.
Chal Emery
Chal Emery graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor’s in Global History and Political Science. Outside of writing, he enjoys long drives through spectacular country, and spending time getting lost in a decent film.
Jill Padfield
Jill Padfield has 7 years of experience teaching high school mathematics, ranging from Alegra 1 to AP Calculas. She is currently working as a Business Analyst, working to improve services for Veterans while earning a masters degree in business administration.
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