Developing an authentic output

Working towards the creation of a product is a fundamental part of a project. It gives the project direction and an end point. However, as with all aspects of your planning the product can range in complexity. It can be tangible (a presentation, a sculpture, a documentary), or intangible (a speech, a debate). It can be one that is easy to create in your lesson, or one that will require the support of colleagues or external partners. It can be a prescribed product or one that is left open for the students to determine i.e. where the students select what they consider to be an appropriate product to showcase their work.

As you start your planning here are some questions to ask yourself:

1. How will the product map onto the curriculum/project requirements?

2. Am I going to prescribe the product or leave the decision-making to the students? (If the latter, how will I ensure that they have the confidence and skills to do this and that point 1. is achieved?)

3. Is it a product that can be produced effectively in my subject lesson or would it benefit from being

produced in a different subject area or elsewhere in the community in order to ensure its authenticity

and quality?

4. Is it a product that needs to be created by an individual student or a group?

5. Does the product require resources/funding to create it?

6. How is the product going to be assessed? How will it demonstrate the learning that has taken place?

Products

There are lots of resources that you can draw on to think about potential products - here are just some ideas...

The importance of making the work public

Larmer et al (2015) identify three reasons for making student work public. First, like authenticity, a public product adds significantly to PBL’s motivating power and encourages high quality work. Second, by creating a product, students make what they have learned ‘visible’ and thus, when shared publicly, discussible. Instead of only being a private exchange between an individual student and teacher, the social dimension of learning becomes more important. This has an impact on classroom and school culture, helping create a “learning community”. Finally, making student work public is an effective way to communicate with parents, community members, and the wider worldabout what PBL is and what it does for students. When the public sees what high quality products students can create, they’re often surprised, and eager to see more.

This leads us to think about our next key principle, the Showcase.