PBL conference in Durham - session 1

More (and better - Kim was able to blog live during the sessions, I had to use Word and then import) notes here

Session 1
Kelley Yonce
- Science
- East Wake School of Integrated Technology
- Advocate of New Technology Foundation
- 5 steps for designing a PBL classroom
-The Buck Institute www.bie.org
Project Based Learning Handbook
o Things to keep in mind:
 Frustration is part of the process, being successful is dependent on how individuals handle it
 The answers top meaningful questions often lead to more questions
 There is no ONE right answer
- PBL vs. Doing Projects
o Large activities completed after the students have been pushed through homework assignments, lectures, and readings, Usually a culminating event for a unit or semester
o PBL: students are pulled through the curriculum by a driving a questions or realistic problem that provides a “need to know”. Lectures, readings, and skill building are integrated into the problem as the students need the information.
 Kids come up with 4 needs to know at the beginning – entry document
o Entry document – lecture – writing exercises – interview – writing exercises – peer edit – rubric
- The project drives the curriculum by creating a need for the students to know the content
- Students work more autonomously or real or realistic work that has high stakes
- Evaluation is made more authentic with performance based measurements and is often conducted with the help of non-teachers
- Designing units
o 1. Begin with the end in mind
 What do we want our students to know and be able to do?
• State content standards
• School wide learning outcomes
o 2. Craft the driving question
 Are provocative
 Are open-ended
 Go to the heart of a discipline or topic
 Are consistent with curricular standards and frameworks
 Are challenging
 Arise from real world situations that students find interesting
 Acts as a lighthouse to keep you, the project designer, on course
 ** Divorce Court between the Thirteen colonies and British Monarchy
o 3. Plan the assessment
 What products could demonstrate what the students have learned?
• Final products
• Sub-assignments
• Process documents
• Webquests
 Final products should….
• Require students to understand, synthesize, and apply the projects outcomes
• Exemplify project outcomes in an authentic way
• Be relevant and interesting to students
• Give students the opportunity to demonstrate and reflect on their learning
 Sub-assignments and process documents : scaffolding
 Reminder:
• PBL methodology does not exclude the use of traditional assignments like homework, journals, research, or even note taking. But, these traditional assignments should have context with the larger project. Students should see a clear connection between the assignment and the project.
o 4. Map the project
 Organize tasks and activities
 Decide how to launch the project
 Gather resources
 Draw a story board
 Entry event
• Hook the students
• Give students their role
• Lay out project or problem to be completes of solved
• Give clues for students to research and ask questions about
o 5. Manage the process
 Not too different than managing a team of employees
 Teacher’s role
• Group students appropriately
• Orient students to the goals of the project
• Organize the project daily by defining the scope of the inquiry
• Clarify everything
• Monitor and regulate student behavior
• Manage the workflow
o Team leader not the only one doing the work
• Evaluate success and reflect on learning
- 6 A’s of PBL’s
o Authenticity
o Academic rigor
o Applied learning
o Active exploration
o Adult connections
o Assessment practices
- Resources
o Midlink Magazine www.ncsu.edu/midlink/newest.htm
o thinkQuest www.thinkquest.org/en/projects/index.html
o Buck institute www.bie.org/index.php/site/PBL/overview_pbl
o George Lucas Foundation www.edutopia.org