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By: Ryan Steuer, Executive Director of Magnify Learning
Author of Project Based Learning Stories and Structures: Wins, Fails, and Where to Start
Indianapolis, IN
What is Project Based Learning? What is PBL? When we address this question, I think it’s important to approach it in two different ways. There’s a technical definition of PBL, but there’s also a deeper meaning and value system definition.
We’ll start with defining PBL from a technical standpoint. At Magnify Learning we define Project Based Learning (PBL) as a model and framework of teaching and learning in which students acquire content knowledge and skills in order to answer a driving question based on an authentic challenge, need, problem or concern. PBL is done collaboratively and within groups using a variety of employability skills such as critical thinking, communication, and creativity. It allows for student voice and choice as well as inquiry. Authentic PBL involves a community partner, a publicly presented product, and an ongoing process of reflection.
There’s often a lot of confusion between what differentiates a traditional “project” from a Project Based Learning Unit. When we look at a traditional project the culminating event most likely happens at the end of the unit after all student learning has already taken place. The knowledge and skills taught in the unit are not necessarily needed to complete the project and the project itself does not typically reflect all of the student learning. Oftentimes the project has no real-world connection and after being graded the project is no longer used.
In contrast a Project Based Learning Unit poses an authentic problem, challenge, need, or issue at the start of the unit in the form of an entry event. Students receive the rubrics outlining what tasks or end products they will have to create. From the very start of the PBL Unit students see their need to learn the course content and skills in order to complete each step or benchmark of the PBL. Their end goal is clear from the beginning and their learning is meaningful because they need the content and skills in order to solve the problem, challenge, need, or issue that has been posed to them. The PBL Unit involves a community partner and ends with a publicly presented product that will be used even after the unit has been completed. So now that I’ve established a baseline definition for PBL let’s take a look at the deeper value and meaning of how we define PBL.
When we’re looking at PBL through the lens of a deeper level value system, we have several different stakeholders to consider:
Learners see PBL as opportunity. It is the opportunity to talk with famous authors, give speeches at the opening of a huge solar farm, or start a freelance photography business.
Facilitators see PBL as the way they have always wanted to teach.
Community Partners see hope for their future interviews because they see young people who will look them in the eye, speak with confidence, think for themselves, and work well with others.
Parents see their kids excited to go to school and share what they are doing during the day.
PBL is Giving Students an Authentic “Why” for Learning
Learners love PBL because it answers the age old question every learner has, “Why do I need to learn this?” By linking academic standards to real world problem solving, the ‘why’ for the learning is always front and center. From the entry event with a community partner launching a PBL Unit to the final presentation displaying the learner’s solution, learners know why they are studying the content and what they are working for. As we teach our learners how to work in groups or how to speak in public they begin to love the things that have been historically feared in schools. When we hear from learners like Charlie and Jack from one of our Demonstration Sites in Missouri, who both talk about liking group work because it is productive, we see PBL working. Did you hear that? They actually like working in groups in school. Well trained passionate PBLers are creating meaningful authentic opportunities for their learners, and their students are in turn learning the critical skills employers are looking for.
PBL is Personal & Educational Growth For Teachers & Students Alike
“Why didn’t I hear about this 15 years ago?” Anne, a newly PBL trained facilitator, asked after a PBL Jumpstart Workshop. We don’t get into teaching because we have bills to pay or because we have some extra free time. We get into teaching because we believe in ‘light bulb moments’; we want our learners to see more opportunities. We get into teaching because we believe by positively changing the trajectory of a young learner we can help make the world a better place. As Magnify Learning works with educators from around the country, we hear from rural, suburban, urban educators that PBL is putting them in a position to teach like they have always wanted to. PBLers have an opportunity to connect with learners on a personal level, to meaningfully apply their content to the real world, and to make their learners think critically. When you ask a PBL educator how PBL has changed their classroom, they often start by saying, “It has actually changed more than just my classroom…” They then go on to tell a story about how PBL has caused them to rethink their classroom practice and their endeavors outside of school. After that aside, they will tell you story after story about learners who were awakened by a particular PBL unit or moment with a community partner.
PBL is Connecting Learning to the Community & Building Employability Skills
We can’t define PBL without talking about Community Partners. Community Partners are a key stakeholder because they bring in the real world problems and raise the level of authenticity in our work. If learners are going to tackle the problem of invasive species in a local park, then they need to hear from local park officials and the Department of Natural Resources. These types of community partners give credibility that the work happening inside and outside of the classroom is meaningful and authentic work adults are doing on a daily basis. In this case, our community partner may say, “Good morning, naturalists! My name is Gwen, and I work with DNR. I need your help to solve a problem we have been tackling for years. Will you help us eradicate this invasive species from our park?” Now when the biology teacher begins teaching on ecosystems and the English teacher instructs on writing for specific audiences, this standards based work has a context for learners.
Furthermore community partners help reinforce and model the necessary employability skills for students’ future careers. One of the community members from the local Chamber of Commerce at one of our Demonstration Sites noted the value of PBL after being a part of feedback panel:
“Employability skills are a real life concern for many that we see applying for jobs in the area. Students are developing communication skills and honing in on presentation skills and simply how to interact in a public setting. “
Our learners need to know how to write well and solve complicated math problems, but many of the skills employers are looking for are skills like problem solving, collaborating, presenting, and thinking critically. These employability skills are not learned in a traditional classroom but need to be taught in an authentic context and practiced with real world professionals like our community partners.
Our communities want to help empower the next generation of leaders, and PBL gives us a bridge to invite the community into meaningful interactions with our learners. We can’t do it all, and we shouldn’t. Let the community come in and help raise the engagement levels of our learners. Invite Community Partners to bring real world problems into your classroom to add meaning to your standards. Community Partners are waiting for you to invite them!
PBL is Engaging Students in Work They Care About
Most parents know the answer before they ask the question, “How was school today?” and the answer IS most likely….”fine.” Was it fine? Probably not, but it gives parents an answer. And if school was ‘fine’ that day, is that really what we are looking for? Do we want to stop with ‘fine’? We believe every learner deserves to be a part of an inspiring story. We don’t want school to be ‘fine’. We want school to be engaging, purposeful, and inspiring! With Project Based Learning, we see learners come alive and solve real world problems and discover their gifts and passions. Parents see a transformation. Suddenly, when they ask, “How was school?” They start to hear about what was happening and what they are working on. Learners are working on PBL units over their winter break; not because it’s assigned, but because they are engaged and care about the work. To highlight this point, here’s a quote from a middle school parent whose child is in a PBL environment:
“As a parent of a middle schooler, I have watched as teachers this year have encouraged my son to become an independent thinker. They have challenged him to think critically as he has worked with his classmates on PBL’s this year. He always comes home talking about them and is excited to go back each day. He loves the community walking trail they have been working on and he even designed and helped build birdhouses to put on the trail.”
When most middle school parents ask, “How was school?” they hear, “fine.” When a middle schooler is in a PBL environment, their parents start hearing about a walking path they co-created with teenagers at the high school, collaborative PBLs with art shops run by people with intellectual disabilities, or invasive species being eradicated from local parks. When the learners are empowered to take an active role in their learning, we give them things to care about and talk about.
PBL is Learner-Centered, Not Teacher-Centered
If PBL checks all of these boxes for all of these stakeholders, then why isn’t PBL in all classrooms? We get this question often from parents, learners, and community partners. There are a lot of reasons, but the one we regularly tackle in our PBL workshops is the mindset of moving from teacher-centered to learner-centered. We have all of the resources you need to bring PBL into your classroom. Check them out here. Resources and tactics aren’t the issue though. We want to help a staff go through the mindset shift together, so we have PBL Workshops for schools and districts to help a staff go through and experience the PBL process together. Together is a big part of what we do. We want to rally educators together to engage learners, tackle boredom, and transform classrooms. I end every PBL Simplified video with that phrase because it’s what we really want. We have a podcast to help support PBLers, or you can buy my book and get a free course along with it to start to step into the PBL culture.
There are a lot of myths out there about PBL at this point. What I know for sure and see time and time again, is that PBL is good for all learners, and it doesn’t stop there. PBL is good for parents, communities, and the teachers in the classroom. We see PBL ignite the ‘why’ of our educators , and this snowballs into a movement of positive change.
What is PBL? At the heart of it, PBL is a community of like minded people who believe every person deserves to be a part of an inspiring story.
Ryan Steuer has Hoosier roots and comes from Lowell, IN. He was an engineer for a Fortune 50 company, taught 8th grade English, and was a local missionary before founding Magnify Learning in 2015. Ryan’s goal is to sustainably expand the footprint of Project Based Learning because all kids deserve to be part of an inspiring story. Ryan has been serving thousands of educators for over a decade through professional development in Project Based Learning, Service Learning, and all things Technology, Ryan is ‘Living His Why.’ When he’s not doing awesome PBL work he enjoys being outside with his wife and 5 kids as well as their 30 chickens. Ryan can be found canoeing, hiking, and biking with his family as well as pastoring a rural church.
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