the challenges of problem-based and project-based learning ......active learning - project-based...

Carrie La Voy | Laurie Cleavinger | Steven Case

School of Education & Center for STEM Learning

Saturday, 2/23/19

The Challenges of Problem-based

and Project-based Learning in the

Classroom

Think-Pair-Share

What is Project-Based Learning?Describe 3 ways that Project-Based Learning is different from a traditional project

• Time

• Not understanding the approach

• Teachers in survival mode – other curricular demands,

class size

• Too hard

What are the challenges?

What is Project-based Instruction?

• “An approach that focuses on the central concepts and principles of a discipline, involves students in problem-solving investigations and other meaningful tasks, allows students to work autonomously to construct their own learning, and culminates in realistic products” (Buck Institute for Education 2001).

PBI Components

• Driving Question

• Sustained Investigation

• Collaborative

• Product/Artifact

• Central to curriculum

Projects vs. PBI

Similarities

Student Investigation

Product/Artifact

Projects vs. PBI

Project-based instruction• Collaborative

Conventional projects• Individual

Projects vs. PBI




• Auxiliary (augment)

Projects vs. PBI



• Long term



• Short term

Projects vs. PBI



• Long term

• Whole class examines an issue



• Short term

• Individual examines an issue

Projects vs. PBI



• Long term


• Occupy significant class time



• Short term


• Done mostly outside of class

Projects vs. PBI



• Long term


• Occupy significant class time

• Project = learning process and assessment



• Short term


• Done mostly outside of class

• Often project = assessment

Project Based Learning Roadmap

*modified Vee diagram (Gowin)

Project Based Learning - Tardigrades

Project Based Learning - Cultural Migration

Where did we come from?

From the First Americans on, the North American continent has been

populated by immigrants. The United States is proud of being a

"nation of immigrants," and for many years, scholars of immigration

history have been busy documenting the experiences of U.S.

immigrants from all over the globe, from Puritans and Pilgrims to Irish

to Japanese to Mexicans. As a Nation, we have formed human

communities from this rich diversity.

This project will help us explore our communities. As we look around

look around our communities, who are our neighbors? Who lives with

us, and where did they--or their parents, grandparents or great-

grandparents--come from? Are people of common ancestry still tied

to one another in their daily life? Do they live in particular

neighborhoods, have their own celebrations, or participate in ethnic

organizations?


Cultural MigrationWhere did we come from?Sociologists have explored human migration in terms of the "push-pull" model. This model differentiates between push factors that drive people to leave home from pull factors that attract migrants to a new location.

Let's explore our local communities. Your community explorations and observations may lead you to ask more specific research questions about why things are the way they are. Let's begin this community work by asking some questions that will help focus this interesting work

http://www.pathfinderscience.net/culmig/cexres_foc.cfm


Quindaro Townsite

An archaeological district in the vicinity of North 27th Street and the

Missouri Pacific Railroad tracks in Kansas City, Kansas. The settlement was

established by abolitionists in late 1856, with construction starting in 1857.

The town was rapidly settled by migrants aided by the New England

Emigrant Aid Company, who were trying to help secure Kansas as a free

territory. One of a number of villages hugging the narrow bank of

the Missouri River under the bluffs, the town was a free state port-of-entry

for abolitionist forces of Kansas. It was established as part of the resistance

to stop the westward spread of slavery. Quindaro's people also aided

escaped slaves from Missouri and linked them to the Underground Railroad.

Gradually the lower commercial town site was abandoned and became

overgrown. The town site was rediscovered during archaeological study in

the late 1980s, which revealed many aspects of the 1850s town.[3]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeological

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas_City,_Kansas

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England_Emigrant_Aid_Company

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri_River

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_state_(United_States)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underground_Railroad

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quindaro_Townsite#cite_note-swann-3

WORKSHOP FORMAT

Session 1: 9:45 – 10:15 am

Session 2: 10:20 – 10:50 am

Choose 2 of the 3 sessions to attend

• Developing Driving Questions – all grade levels – Room 120

• Scaffolding Problem Solving – elementary math – Room 125

• Project/Problem-based Instruction – middle/high school – Room 130

Take a quick break and head to your first workshop session.

Afterwards, return to room 120 to pick up your certificate of completion.

Remember to pick up your certificate.

Thank you!

Carrie La Voy, [email protected]

Laurie Cleavinger, [email protected]

Steven Case, [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]



Active Learning - Project-based Learning

The Six A’s

Authenticity

Is the project based on a problem of question that is

meaningful to the student and to the community?

Does the project provide the student with opportunities to

produce something that has personal and/or Social

value beyond the school?

Real Learning, Real Work: School-to work as High School Reform,

Adria Steinberg


The Six A’s

Academic Rigor

Does the project cause the student to acquire and apply knowledge related to one or more disciplines or content areas?

Does the project challenge the student to use research methods from one or more disciplines?

Does the student develop higher order thinking skills?


The Six A’s

Applied Learning

Does the student solve a problem that is founded in life and work?

Does the project require organizational skills and self-management?

Does the project cause the student to learn and use skills that are expected in the workplace?


The Six A’s

Active Exploration

Does the student spend a significant amount of time

doing field-based work?

Does the project require the student to use various

methods, media and sources to conduct an

investigation?

Is the student expected to make a presentation to

explain what he or she has learned?


The Six A’s

Adult Relationships

Does the student meet and observe an adult who has relevant expertise and experience?

Does the student work closely with and get to know at least one adult?

Do adults collaborate with each other and with student on the design and assessment of projects?


The Six A’s

Assessment

Does the student use project criteria to gauge what he

or she is learning?

Do adults from outside the classroom help the student

develop a sense of real-world standards?

Is the student’s work assessed regularly through

methods such as exhibitions and portfolios?

Project Based Learning

“The development of a problem-centered approach

to learning allows teachers to operate as a

mediator, guide, provocateur, friend and co-

learner with their students. These investigations

will provide fertile ground where their students can

transfer their learning to multiple contexts.

Learning that only occurs in a single context will

become inert except within that context. Problem-

centered learning allows many experiences and

prior knowledge to come into play as students

develop new constructs.” (NRC, 1999)

What does it look like?

Project Based LearningStudents use a “road map” to the process of

science to “navigate” through their research work – a modified Vee diagram (Gowin).

The activities and experiences organized around the Creating the Context Vee diagram are a set of very deep, very rich, experiences. It is this work and interaction that create the environment from which good research questions emerge to drive the Research Vee diagram.

Example Project Based LearningGlobal Warming Research

Global Warming Research

Stomatal Densities as bioindicators of atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

Research• What is the normal variation in the Stomatal Index found on a

species?

• How much does the Stomatal Index vary between species?

• Is the age of the tree related to the number of stomata found on the leaf?

• Does the cardinal direction the leaf comes from on the tree influence the Stomatal Index? (In North America, the south side of a tree will receive more light and be exposed to more wind.)

• Does the direction the terrain slopes (where the tree is) make a difference tree on the number of stomata found on the leaves?

• Is there a difference in stomatal index on leaves grown in a carbon dioxide enriched environment to those grown under normal atmospheric conditions?

• Is there a variation in the stomatal index along a rainfall gradient?

• What is the variation in numbers of stomata that occur between plants growing in similar habitats but using different photosynthetic pathways, C3, C4, and CAM?

Project Based LearningA few thoughts for research focus

• Keeping An Eye on Ozone

• Stream Monitoring

• UVB and DNA

• Digital Monarch Watch

• Lichens and SO2

• African-American Immigration in Kansas

• Amphibian Biomonitoring

Project Based Learning

Keeping an Eye on Ozone

Ground level ozone is believed to be the most ubiquitous air pollutant and the cause of much injury to the biosphere. Ozone is a toxic gas which is formed by a reaction between air pollutants and sunlight. While the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere protects you from ultraviolet rays contained in sunlight, ozone that forms near the ground is a health hazard. Ground-level ozone affects the respiratory system and can be especially harmful to very young people, elder people, and those people with chronic lung disease.

Visualization – Pattern Seeking

Is generally the process of searching for new unknown patterns within data layers. Often such patterns can only emerge after numerous iterations within an analysis or synthesis activity.

Completely open-ended inquiries typically driven by a problem driven unit of study. Only for teachers who excel in the subject matter, technology, and cartography.

Manipulation of data legends, classification, dimensionality, temporal, or dynamic variables.

Data VisualizationUsing Geographic Information Systems as a data

visualization tool in seeking patterns in large data sets

University of KansasCenter for STEM Learning

http://cstem.ku.edu

Dr. Steven Case [email protected]

1000 Sunnyside Ave Room 3088

Lawrence, KS 66045-3101

785-864-4471


Developing

Driving

Questions

PBI Components

– Driving Question

– Sustained Investigation

– Collaborative

– Product/Artifact

– Central to curriculum

Flow of PBI Unit

Draw ideas from:- Current events- A topic, theme, or central issue from standards and curriculum- Students’ interests and learning characteristicsInformed intuition

Flow of PBI Unit

Develop the PBI Learning Adventure- Decide

Messy situationStudents’ role in it

- DetermineOutcomes and StandardsProblem terrain Write the driving question

- DevelopProblem documentsProblem statementPerformance assessment

Driving Question

– Feasible

– Contextualization

– Worth**

– Meaning

– Sustainable

– It may change with the addition of new information

– It is not solved easily or with a specific formula

– It does not have one right answer

– Ethical

SCRAP

– Effective anchors can be developed

through the SCRAP questions:– What is the Situation?

– What is the Challenge?

– What Role(s) does the student assume?

– Who is the Audience?

– What is the Product/Performance students will demonstrate and or

create?

Driving Question examples

• How do I design a rollercoaster that is safe and fun?(http://educate.intel.com/en/WildRide/)

• What can we do to improve water quality in our city?

• How do we promote biodiversity in our city parks?

• What are the social, political and economic

• implications of emerging diseases?

• WHAT ARE EXAMPLES OF OPPRESSION SIMILAR TO THE HOLOCAUST THAT HAVE

OCCURRED IN MODERN DAY?

• HOW DO DIFFERENT TYPES OF POLLUTION EFFECT OUR ENVIRONMENT?

• How can we get a toy car from one desk to another?

• How can we use our knowledge of plants to enrich the lives of senior adults living near us?

• How can we tell if an insect is helpful or harmful to us?

• How can we make a house that would withstand all storms?

Driving Question Activity

– Directions

– Form groups.

– Try to find a partner(s) with the same grade level/content area

– Work together to answer the questions.

– Each group will share their answers.


– Here are some questions for you to consider for a PBI project. Decide if they meet the criteria for a good driving question. If so, explain why. If not, rewrite the question. We will share with the class.

• What is epic poetry?

• How have native peoples been impacted by changes in the world?

• What is gravity?

• Why do I need to wear a bicycle helmet?

• How does probability relate to games?

• Why is science importance and how can it help people?

• HOW CAN WE USE GOODS AND SERVICES TO HELP THE HOMELESS OR LESS FORTUNATE IN OUR COMMUNITY?

• HOW CAN WE STAY SAFE IN BAD WEATHER?

• HOW IS SHERLOCK HOLMES STILL RELEVANT TODAY?

• How do we use plants in everyday life, and what do those parts do for the plant?


– Choose one of the driving questions from our discussion that is from your

content area. What standards could it address?

Develop a driving question

– Collaborate with your partner(s) and develop a driving question that you might

use in your classroom

– How does it address the characteristics of a good driving question?

– Share with group

PBI Resources

– Books

– Bender, William N., (2012). Project-Based Learning Differentiating Instruction for the 21st

Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin

– Krajcik, Joseph S. and Czerniak, Charlene M., (1998). Teaching Science in Elementary and Middle

School. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates

– Torp, Linda and Sage, Sara. (2002). Problems as Possibilities: Problem-Based Learning for K-16

Education. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)

– The Buck Institute for Project-based learning (www.bie.org)

– Edutopia (www.edutopia.org)

– Laurie Cleavinger: [email protected]

http://www.edutopia.org/


Carrie La Voy

School of Education

Saturday, 2/23/19

Scaffolding Problem Solving:

Elementary Mathematics

A classic algebra problem

Farmer Jane raises chickens and cows on her

family’s farm.

When she looks over the fence, she counts 8

heads; when she looks under the fence, she counts

22 legs.

Does she have more chickens or cows?

How many of each animal does she have?

Adapted from http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/57511.html

http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/57511.html

Why are there problems like this?

What is the goal of problem-based

learning?

Do we need project-based instruction?

What does it look like in math?

Low floor, high ceiling tasks

“problems that are easy to understand or visualize,

but difficult to solve”https://researchparent.com/low-floor-high-ceiling-math-problems/, Feb. 21, 2019

Is this how we define problem-based?

“1 in 3 US Schools Follow Our Ideas” https://www.youcubed.org/our-impact/, Feb. 21, 2019

https://researchparent.com/low-floor-high-ceiling-math-problems/

https://www.youcubed.org/our-impact/

https://www.youcubed.org/tasks/bowl-a-fact/


https://www.youcubed.org/tasks/bowl-a-fact/


“An approach that focuses on the central concepts and principles of a discipline, involves students in problem-solving investigations and other meaningful tasks, allows students to work autonomously to construct their own learning, and culminates in realistic products”.

(Buck Institute for Education 2001)

Project-based Instruction

… involves students in problem-solving… meaningful tasks… construct their own learning… realistic products

Problem-based Instruction?

Problem Performers vs. Problem Explorers

How do your students explore problems?

By using an operation to solve them?

By practicing productive struggle?

Would scaffolding help students become better

problem explorers?

Strategies

Strategy 1: Introduce a simpler problem

Strategy 2: Elicit prior knowledge

Strategy 3: Delay the question

Barlow, A.T., Duncan, M., Lischka, A.E., Hartland, K.S., & Willingham, J.C. 2017.

“Are Your Students Problem Performers or Problem Solvers?” Teaching Children

Mathematics 23, no. 9 (May): 550 – 558.


The simpler problem comes before the primary

problem.


Original problem –

Farmer Jane raises chickens and cows on her family’s farm.

When she looks over the fence, she counts 8 heads; when

she looks under the fence, she counts 22 legs.

Does she have more chickens or cows?

How many of each animal does she have?

Is there a simpler problem?


Is there a simpler problem?

Suppose you see a chicken and two pigs on a farm.

How many legs will you see?

How many heads will you see?


Begin by asking “what do you know about …?”


Original problem – find area of a non-typical shape (L problem)

https://owlcation.com/stem/Compound-shapes-How-to-find-the-area-of-a-L-shape


Is there a task that would elicit prior knowledge?

“What do you know about area?”

Ask students to use grid paper to draw a rectangle that has

an area of 12 square units.


Share the problem without asking the question.


Original problem –

Jake wants to make peach tarts for his

friends. He needs two-thirds of a peach for

each tart, and he has ten peaches. What is

the greatest number of tarts that he can make

with ten peaches?

(adapted from https://mathjourneys.org/2012/04/02/math-peach-tart-problem/)


Is there a way to explore the problem first?

Scaffolded version –

Jake wants to make peach tarts for his friends. He knows

two-thirds of a peach will make one tart.

Use questions to focus attention on relevant parts of the

problem.

Tasks – Low floor, high ceiling

Strategies – Introduce a simpler problem

Elicit prior knowledge

Delay the question

Do you:… involve students in problem-solving… meaningful tasks… construct their own learning… realistic products

What about your classroom?

Thank you!

Carrie La Voy, [email protected]


the challenges of problem-based and project-based learning ......active learning - project-based...

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