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What is Project-Based Learning?
What is Project-Based Learning?
Project-Based Learning (PBL) is a pedagogical approach where students learn by actively engaging in real-world and personally meaningful projects. PBL courses infuse content-rich readings, lectures, and instruction to support students as they work with faculty to pose real questions, find resources, develop a project, design a process, and synthesize and communicate results. The goal is for students to learn the skills needed for independent sustained inquiry in an authentic setting.
PBL can look different in each classroom based on factors like course level, course objectives, the interests of the students, the interests of the faculty, and the extent to which the course is sequenced with other courses. For example, in first-year courses, students might identify areas of interest, then follow faculty-directed stages as they build artifacts to share in a campus-wide showcase. PBL at the capstone level might be completely student-directed as they build their projects from scratch for a community partner.
Key Points:
Can be integrated into courses at all levels in the curriculum, and across disciplines
Values student independence and authenticity
Is a High-Impact Practice
Encourages diversity and inclusion
Can be used with a variety of pedagogical approaches (e.g., case study, capstone, research, study abroad, work-integrated learning, community-based learning, writing intensive course, ePortfolio)
Develops a variety of real-life skills, such as communication, teamwork, and project-management
Helps students to engage with the community and solve real problems
To help describe the variety of PBL experiences, we conceptualize PBL at three levels:
High Impact PBL: This is an introductory level, designed to help orient students to PBL. Students receive lots of guidance and modeling, so they can learn the skills needed to work towards more independent work.
Higher Impact PBL: This is an intermediate level, designed to help students take more control of their learning. Students are given more freedom, but with strong support, as they take an active role in the development of projects.
Highest ImpactPBL: This is an advanced level, designed to give students a lot of independence. Students develop and manage their own projects with external stakeholders, with faculty providing oversight as expert consultants.
There are benefits to all three levels of PBL, and a single course can contain PBL experiences from any or all of these levels.
The goal of this website is to provide support, information, tools, and resources to faculty interested in implementing PBL practices in the college-level classroom.
Characteristics of PBL
Characteristics of PBL
Authenticity: (and this is mostly taken from Gurkan's work)
Authenticity: (and this is mostly taken from Gurkan's work)
Definition:
Definition:
A work that is real to students–it is authentic to their lives–or the work has a direct impact on or use in the real world.
Elements of authenticity in PBL:
1. The topic students are studying applies in the workplace or other real-world context.
2. The resources students use are relevant beyond the classroom.
3. The processes students use let them practice methodology and tools they will encounter outside of the classroom.
3. Students have choice, so that what they write about and discuss speaks to their interests.
4. The artifact that students produce involves creating products or practicing skills that are useful beyond the classroom.
5, The impact of the project is broader than the student's own learning.
We also need a graphic here. It can be the chart from Gurkan's draft, a graphic from online, or our own graphic related to process.
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Student Voice and Choice:
Student Voice and Choice:
Definition:
Definition:
Instructional methods, techniques, and approaches based on student interest
Elements of student voice and choice in PBL:
1. Topics, Research questions
2. Who to work with, or to work alone
3. Process, methodology, tools
4. Where they do the work
4. Timeline
5. Type of artifact produced
These are basically what we discussed for our Likert scales, so not sure if we want these as text or graphics
Process Models
Process Models
Process diagrams go here: Ours, and then a fill-in-the-blank one?
Examples
Examples
PBL in Programming Languages (CSCI 355)
Programming Languages is a 300-level class for Computer Science majors, and is designed around three
projects, each taking about a third of the semester.
Project 1: In-Depth Study of a Programming Language
Learning Objective: To learn and critically analyze a new programming language, and to reflect on the
process used to learn the new language
Artifact: A 5-page report
In this project students are asked to choose a programming language that is unfamiliar to them, provide
a historical overview of the language, and learn and demonstrate knowledge of some
features of the language. Then, students were asked to choose five criteria and complete an in-depth
analysis of the language using these criteria. After the students submitted reports, we held a class
discussion where students reflected on what they learned and how they learned it.
Student Voice and Choice: Students were able to choose their own topic and choose the criteria they
used to evaluate the programming language.
Authenticity: Students could choose a language they were interested in learning about either because
of personal interest or because they thought it might be useful professionally. Insight into techniques
about how to learn a new language is also something that will help the students in multiple classes and
in their professional work.
Project 2: Programming Language Presentations
Learning Objective: To learn and analyze a programming language in-depth
Artifact: a 15-minute group presentation
In this project, students were given a list of programming languages and asked to choose one to study
in-depth. At this point in the course, students have learned about different programmatic structures,
and trade-offs between them. So, the goal of this project is for students to apply that knowledge to a
new problem.
Student Voice and Choice: Students were able to choose their own topic (from a list) and had some
flexibility with which parts of the programming language they analyzed.
Authenticity: Students are applying he same type of analysis skills they would be expected to use in the
workplace.
Project 3: Functional Language Tutorial
Learning Objective: To learn and demonstrate key concepts in a new functional programming
Language
Artifact: A brief written tutorial covering features of the language
Students were asked to learn a new functional programming language and then to create a three-part
tutorial. The tutorial had to include a beginning-level lesson, an intermediate-level lesson, and a
moderately advanced-level lesson. Students also had to write a reflection on the process of learning the
programming language.
Student Voice and Choice: Students could choose their language, choose the concepts they wanted to
highlight, and were encouraged to be creative in their tutorials.
Authenticity: Students could choose a language that was important to them, and being able to explain
technical information clearly is a skill they will use regularly in their professional lives.
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PBL in Database Systems (CSCI 443)
Database Systems is a 400-level class for Computer Science majors. Students design three database
systems over the course of the semester. One is done mostly in-class, with a lot of guidance from the
instructor. The second is done as a series of homework assignments, and students have more flexibility
with the design of the system. The third is their final project, developed and designed completely
independently, and can be a prototype of a system that would be used by someone in the community.
The artifacts for all three projects are working database systems and the design documents associated
with them. The students also have to present their final projects to the class.
Database #1: In-Class
The class is designed so that the instructor introduces a component of database design. The students
then demonstrate their understanding of the topic by working in small groups to apply the concept in a
very controlled context. After a series of in-class assignments, the students have created a small
functioning database system.
Student Voice and Choice: Students have very limited choice in this project. It is closely controlled to make sure students are understanding core course concepts.
Authenticity: Although this project is a teaching project and not a database that would actually be used,
it is authentic in the sense that students are demonstrating their knowledge of concepts that will help
them develop more realistic databases.
Database #2: Homework
Throughout the semester students complete a series of homework assignments that culminate in a
database system. After the instructor has introduced a topic, and the student has demonstrated
understanding of the topic by completing the appropriate parts of the database they are working on in-
class (Database #1, above), they then apply the concept in a new context as part of a homework
assignment.
Student Voice and Choice: Students choose their own direction for this database, as long as it works
within constraints specified by the instructor.
Authenticity: In this series of assignments, students are going through the design and development of
an actual database project, similar to what they would complete in the workplace.
Database #3: Final Project
Students complete a final project in this course, where they design a prototype of a database system from start-to-finish, alone or in small groups. Some students
choose to create projects that will be used in their community (for example, a database they could use at their current job, or as part of a campus club).
Student Voice and Choice: Students choose their topic and have a large amount of flexibility with the
design.
Authenticity: Students choose topics of interest to them and develop a project that could be used
beyond the course.
Pedagogical Framework
Pedagogical Framework
High Impact Practices, Alignment with PLUS, and Taxonomy?
High Impact Practices, Alignment with PLUS, and Taxonomy?
How Do I Get Started?
How Do I Get Started?
[Need to Develop Tools That Go Here]
[Need to Develop Tools That Go Here]
FAQs
FAQs
I have too much content to cover in my class. There's not time to supervise a project. Can I still do PBL?
How do I make connections with real-world clients?
Will this increase my workload?
How do I assess whether students have learned course content?
How do I grade such open-ended projects?
What is the difference between Project-Based Learning and Problem-Based Learning?
Resources
Resources
Association of American Colleges and Universities. (2018). The LEAP challenge: Engaging in capstones and signature work. Peer Review, 20(2). Retrieved from https://www.aacu.org/peerreview/2018/Spring
Buck Institute. Gold standard PBL: Essential project design elements. PBL Works. Retrieved from https://www.pblworks.org/what-is-pbl/gold-standard-project-design
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