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A Intro to PBL
1. What is PBL?
2. PBL Pedagogy
3. PBL Examples
4. Success Stories
5. PBL Resources
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A. Introduction to Networked Project-Based Learning

1. What is Project Based Learning (PBL)?

In research conducted by the AutoDesk Foundation, teachers from seventeen schools agreed that PBL exhibited similar characteristics:

Characteristics of project- based learning

  • Students make decisions within a prescribed framework.
  • There’s a problem or challenge without a predetermined solution.
  • Students design the process for reaching a solution.
  • Students are responsible for accessing and managing the information they gather.
  • Evaluation takes place continuously.
  • Students regularly reflect on what they’re doing.
  • A final product (not necessarily material) is produced and is evaluated for quality.
  • The classroom has an atmosphere that tolerates error and change.

Generally speaking,
students engaged in a project...

  • ...have some choice in deciding what they will work on.
  • ...plan their own project.
  • ...participate in defining criteria and rubrics to assess their project.
  • ...solve problems they encounter while working on their project.
  • ...make some sort of presentation of their project.

The project-based learning approach creates a "constructivist" learning environment in which students construct their own knowledge. Whereas in the "old school" model the teacher was the task master -- in the "new school" model the teacher becomes the facilitator. See graphic comparing two models.

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