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Welcome to the Impactful PBL™ Podcast Season 1 – your resource for cultivating a thriving project-based learning culture in your school. Season 1 introduces the Impactful PBL™ Roadmap, the framework we created to help educators craft memorable learning experiences that empower their students to tackle school and community challenges through project-based learning. Join us as we embark on a journey filled with proven strategies and invaluable tips to empower instructional leaders and teachers to become highly effective project-based educators.
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How can we shift students from presentations to presentations of learning?
Let’s explore how teachers can enhance their project-based learning unit culminating event. Many teachers are able to plan creative ways for students to share their knowledge, and their students can create great solutions to their projects' driving question. However, some teachers experience difficulty fostering an environment where students are equipped to share their learning journey. In this episode, we will examine how to shift students from delivering presentations to presentations of learning.
How can teachers improve their PBL experience through reflection?
Let’s explore how teachers can improve their project-based learning experience by creating a reflection process. Many of the teachers inside the Impactful PBL Network are wrapping up their project-based learning unit. I'm so thrilled to hear about what students and teachers are learning during their PBL experience. Educators often discuss the importance of providing space for students to reflect, but self-reflection is essential for them as well. In this episode, we will examine a protocol that teachers can use to reflect on their project-based learning experience.
How can we enhance students’ public products using effective feedback strategies?
Let's explore how to use feedback to improve students' work during project-based learning by giving quality feedback. Feedback is an essential component of the formative assessment process. The challenge is that sometimes students receive inadequate feedback during the project-based learning unit, preventing them from producing their highest level of work. This episode will examine how teachers can enhance students’ public products using effective feedback strategies.
How can we plan a project showcase without feeling overwhelmed?
Let's discuss how to plan a showcase to help students share their knowledge with an authentic audience. During phase 7 of the Impactful PBL Roadmap, we explore how to finalize students’ showcase agenda to determine how students will share what they learned during the PBL unit with an authentic audience. This episode will examine how to plan a project showcase with less overwhelm using two planning templates.
What is the teachers’ role during project-based learning?
Let's discuss the teachers' role during project-based learning experiences. Last month, I led an introduction to PBL workshop, and a teacher asked the following questions: What is the teachers' role during project-based learning? Is it possible to offer too much voice and choice? How much should students contribute to the project? How much should teachers contribute to the project? In this episode, we will explore the teachers' role during project-based learning.
How can we choose an engaging project-based learning topic?
Many teachers are becoming acclimated to the new normal of school. They have their schedule, routine, and logistics mastered. Or at least, they feel more comfortable with their new teaching life. Many teachers are ready to put theory into practice and plan their first project-based unit, but they are stuck attempting to find an engaging project topic or theme. In this episode, we will explore how to discover a project topic that students will enjoy and how to create a scenario that students will find interesting.
How can we use milestones to track students’ progress during PBL?
Let’s explore some ideas to assess students during project-based learning, which, if done correctly, will help teachers monitor student's academic progress. Regardless if teachers are implementing PBL in a face to face environment, blended or fully remote learning environment, you know how important it is to monitor students' progress toward goals. During this episode, we will explore ways to track students' progress during project-based learning.
How can we assess students during project-based learning?
A teacher expressed concerns about assigning grades and the general idea for evaluating students during PBL units. The teacher shared that she wanted students to enjoy the process. She was concerned that grading might cause students to become unmotivated or disinterested in projects. I understood her concern. We spent some time brainstorming ways to assess students during project-based learning units.
How can we foster academic risk-taking during PBL?
Let's explore how to create a learning environment conducive to project-based learning. I've seen teachers become excited about implementing their PBL unit and launch their first unit to discover that students struggle to engage in this form of learning thoroughly. Specifically, teachers often share how students struggle with brainstorming ideas, sharing ideas, creating questions to research, taking the initiative to work on tasks, etc.