This post is a response defining project-based learning (PBL), as well as listing key elements, affordances and constraints, and important aspects to consider about it based on various readings.
Project-based learning is a type of learning where students are critically thinking and actively engaged in questioning, understanding, and solving real world problems and typically results in a project as the product. The five elements of PBL are real world connection, core to learning, structured collaboration, student driven, and multifaceted assessment (Edutopia, 2014). Some key characteristics of real world connection is that students need to understand their audience outside the classroom; for core to learning, the teacher must be incorporating standards and providing academic rigor; for structured collaboration, scaffolding learning is key; for student driven work, the teacher must ask facilitate discussion through thought provoking questions; and for multifaceted assessment, students must be assessing themselves and the teacher should continuously have small check-ins on students’ progress. Affordances of PBL include students becoming self-directed learners, learning how to make connections and apply their knowledge in new situations, collaborating well with other students (Edutopia, 2014). Tobias, Campbell, and Greco (2015) state that students can think more deeply and working in the real world allows for authenticity in student learning. As a teacher, PBL empowers teachers to design original curriculum, work together with students on projects, and integrates standards well (Tobias et al., 2015). Some constraints of PBL are the difficulty of working with the school’s current schedule or pre-set curricula, involving and connecting with the community well, and getting out of comfort zones both as a student and teacher (Provenzano, 2018). A PBL designer needs to consider how to integrate standards into the process. They also need to understand the basic framework for PBL design (i.e. choosing a worthwhile topic, real-life context, questions, etc.). Planning ahead how to create rubrics and how to assess students through a process of feedback and reflection throughout the project is also key (Provenzano, 2018). Edutopia (2014, June 2014). Five keys to rigorous project-based learning (video post). Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnzCGNnU_WM Tobias, E. S., Campbell, M. R., & Greco, P. (2015). Bringing curriculum to life: Enacting project-based learning in music programs. Music Educators Journal, 102(2), 39-47. Provenzano, B. (2018, November 27). Project-based learning and the research paper [blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/article/project-based-learning-and-research-paper A possible PBL-based project for my end of semester course proposal on songwriting could be students writing their own songs from the perspective of one of their classmates who is culturally different from them. The goal of this project would be for students to learn about empathy, gain skills in interviewing and generating thoughtful questions, and learning how to understand and converse about harder topics like race, gender, culture, etc. Students would choose a partner, then they would have to generate interview questions, interview their partner, analyze and define aspects of a good song, write lyrics (decide if there should be some initial format), and then combine it with music. Students could add different instrumentation or choose what genre or style they want to write in and research depending on their interests. As the teacher, I would mainly be the facilitator of songwriting and question asking, with some mini-lessons on parts of a song and interviewing. Comments are closed.
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Davina MiawOn this page, I will present examples of my scholarship in the form of reflective essays and philosophical assignments. Archives
November 2019
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