PBL Resources

Natick Public Schools - www.natickps.org

Professional Development for Project Based Learning:

Advanced Project Based Learning for Student Agency is a blended, workshop style, personalized course with face-to-face and online components designed to have participants redesign an existing Project Based Learning unit and reflect on, critique, and redesign it for authentic Student Agency. Project Based Learning focuses on students taking the lead in solving a problem or issue and teachers becoming coaches or facilitators. Teachers need to make sure that all students will participate throughout the entire project on authentic problems that are meaningful to students. Students also need to have different opportunities and options in how they approach the problem or issue and they must be able to present their solution or solutions in a multitude of ways of their choosing.

Course participants will evaluate their existing PBL units (PBL design, student work samples, reflections and assessments, implementation and PBL management challenges) against the Buck Institutes eight Gold Standard PBL Essentials and the Deeper Learning Framework. They will identify in addition to Student Agency, 2-3 more areas to improve on. Participants will learn and develop knowledge and skills to make the improvements guided by the course activities and coached by the course facilitators and each other.

1 Grad Credit from Framingham State Univ. - Syllabus

Instructor: Sandy Lemon Location: Natick Town Hall - Sign up on NatickPD

Coaching PBL Using Design Thinking with Kathleen Fritz

For those interested in taking a deep dive into PBL using the CREATOMSetGO Design thinking tools for coaching other teachers or students.

July 10, 11, and 12 at Westford Public Schools, 15 In-district credits only

Syllabus

NPS Design Tempates:

The following Design Templates were created by the members of the 2017-18 Middle School Innovation Team. They are a blending of templates that are used by partner organizations including the Buck Institute, PBL Consulting and CreatomSetGo to serve our purposes in the Natick Public Schools for helping educator to design Deep Project Based Learning Units. The templates were used this year to document the design process of Project Based Learning that occurred in Natick Courses and for the Natick PBL Virtual Library.

Recommended Book List:

For Classroom Teachers:

  • Hacking PBL: 10 Easy Steps to PBL and Inquiry in the Classroom by Ross Cooper and Erin Murphy
  • EMPOWER: What Happens When Students Own their Own Learning by A. J. Jullani and John Spencer
  • Innovator Mindset by George Couros
  • LAUNCH: Using Design Thinking to Boost Creativity and bring out the Maker in Every Student by John Spencer and A.J. Juliani
  • Project Based Writing, Teaching Writers to Manage Time and Clarify Pupose by Liz Prather
  • Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning by John Hattie
  • 10 Mindframes for Visible Learning by John Hattie and Klaus Zierer
  • K-12 Blended Teaching: A guide to Personalized Learning and Online Integration by Charles R. Graham, Jered Borup, Cecil R. Short, Leanna Archambault

For Leaders:

  • The Human Side of Changing Education: How to Lead Change with Clarity, Conviction, and Courage by Julie Wilson
  • Pathways to Personalization: A Framework for School Change by Shawn Rubin and Cathy Sanford
  • Deep Learning: Engage the World, Change the World by Michael Fullan, Joanne Quinn, and Joanne McEachen
  • Leading Personalized and Digital Learning: A Framework for Implementing School Change by Mary Ann Wolf, Elizabeth Bobst and Nancy Mangum
  • UDL in the Clouds - How to Design and Deliver Online Education using Universal Design for Learning by Katie Novak and Tom Thibodeau

Recommended Websites: