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PROJECT-BASED LEARNING

Getting Started With Project-Based Learning

(Hint: Don’t Go Crazy)
A handful of tips to help teachers ease into PBL without getting
overwhelmed.

By Andrew Miller
August 6, 2012         Updated November 3, 2017

Are you just beginning (https://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning-getting-started-resources) with project-

based learning? Are you concerned about time? Are you wondering about how to engage students in

their first project? Anyone getting started with PBL has concerns and questions about making it a reality

in their classroom.

One of the things we stress for new PBL practitioners is, as I say, “Don’t go crazy.” It’s easy to go too

big when you first start with PBL. I’ve heard from many teachers new to PBL that a large, eight-week

integrated project was a mistake. It was difficult to keep momentum, and students often grew tired of

the project itself. Teachers and students both need to consider their own scaffolds and a gradual

release to more long-term and complex PBL projects. Here are a few things to consider if you’re just

getting started with PBL.

RENOVATE A PROJECT
Projects and project libraries are everywhere. Instead of planning a full project with all the learning

targets, milestones, and products, teachers can save time by renovating an existing project

(https://www.bie.org/project_search).

As you search project libraries for ideas, remember to look at projects across all grade levels. Although

you might want that very specific seventh-grade social studies project, you might find a relevant project

in 11th grade that could be modified.

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Be open to projects everywhere, find great ideas, and then modify.

LIMITED SCOPE
The longer the project, the more students should learn. Therefore, a four-week project will no doubt

target many standards that must be taught and assessed, which can be quite daunting for a first

project.

Try to focus on two or three priority standards for your first project. Concentrate the learning on one

subject rather than multiple disciplines. And aim for a two- to three-week project, or approximately 10 to

15 contact hours.

In addition to limiting the time, you might consider narrowing choice. Instead of many product options,

offer a short menu. Allow students to choose how they want to work, but choose the teams for the

project yourself. There are many ways to build voice and choice into a project, but these aspects can be

limited.

By narrowing the scope of a project, teachers and their students can have short-term success that

builds stamina for more complex projects later.

PLAN EARLY
One of the challenges of PBL, but also one of the joys, is the planning process. In PBL, you plan up

front, and it does take a significant amount of time. You need to plan assessments and scaffolds and

gather resources to support project learning.

While you might be able to do some of this during scheduled planning time, ask your leadership for

creative structures to carve out time for planning. Perhaps staff meetings can be used for this time, or

release days can be offered.

It’s important to get ahead and feel prepared for and confident about a project. By using the backward

design process, you can effectively map out a project that’s ready to go in the classroom.

Once you plan, you’re free to differentiate instruction and meet the needs of your students rather than

being in permanent crisis mode trying to figure what will happen tomorrow.

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GATHER FEEDBACK
When you have a great project planned, reach out to colleagues both digitally and in person to get

feedback. This can be done through posting an idea on Twitter or having a gallery walk of ideas, where

teachers walk your project gallery and leave feedback on Post-its. If you’re able, have a 30-minute

conversation with a teacher colleague or an instructional coach.

MAIN COURSE, NOT DESSERT

It’s easy in a short-term project to fall into the trap of a “dessert” project that isn’t necessarily inquiry-

based. With PBL, the project itself is the learning—it’s the “main course

(http://www.bie.org/object/document/main_course_not_dessert).” In fact, many teachers who think they’re doing

PBL are actually doing projects. In PBL you’re teaching through the project—not teaching and then

doing the project.

Use an effective PBL project checklist (https://www.bie.org/object/document/pbl_essential_elements_checklist) to

ensure a high-quality experience while still keeping a narrow focus and timeline. It helps to make sure

that you’re focusing on aspects such as inquiry, voice and choice, and significant content.

COMMIT TO REFLECTION
We’re all learners, and when we start something new, we start small, limiting our focus to help us

master the bigger thing step by step. A key aspect of this is that when you finish a project, you should

carve out time to reflect on it.

Consider journaling, having a dialogue with an instructional coach, or following a structured reflection

protocol with a team of teachers.

Through reflection, projects become better and may live on for many years, so that reflection time pays

off with time saved on subsequent runs through the project.

FILED UNDER

Project-Based Learning PBL Planning

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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Getting Started With Project-Based Learning (Hint: Don’t ... https://www.edutopia.org/blog/project-based-learning-getti...

Andrew Miller
Instructional Coach at Shanghai American School

@betamiller

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