Audible, abundant, adorn, anticipate, aristocrat, Andy ...these are all great words and some get close, but they are not what we mean we talk about the 6 A’s of PBL Project Design. We’re continuing a series around the 6 A’s of PBL Project Design. This video will address Active Exploration.
Active vs Passive is the difference between apathetic and engaged. The difference between compliant and empowered. Sure you can study bald eagles, but what if you embarked on a PBL journey where 1st graders work toward passionate presentations to save bald eagles in their area. There’s a mission in that! You're still reading books, still studying life cycles, still learning place values and learning citizenship. Now, you have a host of community partners involved and a mission...not an assignment. Check out a full outline of this project from our friends at Babcock Ranch Neighborhood School in Florida in the resource section below.
As we discussed in the Academic Rigor video, the power standards we are engaging in are there for a reason. These are things we believe our learners need to be successful in the world. If we want them to own these standards and not just brain dump for a test and forget, then we need to give them handles. Life cycles can be difficult for a 1st grader unless they need to know life cycles in order to explain the importance of habitat to community members in order to save bald eagles! Now those are emotional handles one can get excited about.
Your high school career can seem unimportant until you get the opportunity to use what you have learned over four years in a Capstone PBL that affects the community. Maybe you’re organizing a STEM talk for women or organizing a run to help a nonprofit organization. These active experiences give our learners handles to hold on to their learning.
Active exploration teaches our learners to be curious. Seth Godin stated, “You can’t be curious and angry at the same time.” Curiosity changes people. Active exploration creates a curiosity in learners that is more powerful than our content. I can start the “What if…” chain.
What if I can make a difference in the world? ....What if the other person has a good point? ....What if I asked for help?....What if I could do something no one in my family has ever done?....What if I could forgive someone?....What if someone from our school could achieve great things?....And what if that person was me?
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