WHAT IS PROJECT BASED LEARNING?
According the Buck Institute for Education, PBL is “a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an authentic, engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge.”
For example, students may be challenged with how to reduce the amount of trash generated daily in the student cafeteria by 50-percent in 90 days?”
Students will then have to investigate their school’s current recycling program and its effectiveness, while comparing it to other school’s programs and/or with the city’s current program.
The PBL Difference
Project Based Learning can be successful across all grade levels and adapted for any subject. Students respond favorably to this type of hands-on learning because of its flexibility and being able to work he excitement of working on a project that is exciting and is meaningful.
Studies have shown that PBL has numerous benefits. According to a report by ASCD, secondary schools showed “students in the project-based-learning school significantly outperformed the traditional-school students in mathematics skills as well as conceptual and applied knowledge.” This same study also revealed that the school using PBL had three times as many students pass the national exam versus the traditional learning school.
Our teachers and staff want students to enjoy the learning process as they develop skills and knowledge that will benefit them throughout their lives.
Service Learning