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Build A LearnerCentered PBL CourseStep by StepPROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
01020305CHOOSE TOPICSPROBLEMATIZEPROTOTYPE The Process is EasyPROJECTSYLLABUS.COMCOLLABORATE 06070809RESEARCHREMODELDELIVERREFLECT04PITCH
Step 1: Choose Topics that MatterIt's exciting to think about workingwith projects, yet finding ways to keepstudents engaged longterm can be achallenge. Students lose interest inshort order when the work they aredoing feels irrelevant to their everydaylives.A Learner Centered (LC) approachaddresses this problem. LC PBL drawson the learner's interests, experienceand passions first, This gives studentsthe opportunity to connect theirpersonal interests with courseoutcomes, Tapping into learnersexperience and interests builds astrong foundation for continuedengagement and learning.help students draw on theirhistories, culture, andexperience to locate areasof interest and concern.help students integratethese interests with courseoutcomes and otherclassroom constraints.PROJECTSYLLABUS.COMhelp students consider theirwell formed opinions anduse this as a springboard forlearning more about theirtopics of interest.To StudentsCREATE ASSIGNMENTS TO
Learning to work effectively with others is a crucial skill, important to the work students do in the classroom andin the work world. Learner Centered PBL courses presentopportunities for students to hone these skills. Whenstudents work with others, they learn to listen andentertain multiple perspectives. Team work in the context of a learner centered PBLclassroom provides opportunities for students to bothreflect on their experience and learn from those whosebackgrounds, skills, knowledge and experience differfrom their's. Students learn to experience differences asassets, worthwhile opportunities to challengepresumptions and think more critically.Step 2: CollaborateForm Teams thatWorkhelp students find shared interests andentertain difference.help students learn about each other, theirhistories, experiences, hobbies, and goals.help students learn valuable listening skillsand other necessary strategies for workingtogether effectively.CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TOPROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
Step 3: Problematize Teach Students to Locate andUnderstand ProblemsBeneath every project is a problem (or two or three). Mostproblems, wicked and otherwise,are complex. In a LearnerCentered PBL course animportant part of the process forthe learner is to understand theproblem in all its complexity.Learners need time to explore the conventional wisdomssurrounding an issue, exploretheir own assumptions, and think critically. Instructors need to startearly, providing opportunities forstudents to see the problem frommultiple perspectives and beginto identify needs.CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TOhelp students gain a senseof how others are talkingabout their topics.help students identifysome of the assumptionsthey themselves carry.help students conductlibrary research tochallenge their opinionsand assumptions.PROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
It might seem early to begin pitching ideas forsolutions, that is, while learners are early in theprocess of fully understanding the problems andneeds associated with their topics, yet envisioningsolutions is key to generating interest andidentifying problems in those solutions. Studentsneed time to envision the possibilities, test out theirideas and shift directions if needed.Design Thinking methods, such as "innovationsprints," "flash talks" and "pitches," provide studentsthe chance to practice articulating the problem,identify assumptions, brainstorm possible ways toaddress needs and revise as needed.Step 4: Pitch Encourage Studentsto think Big introduce students to design thinkingstrategies, such as "innovation sprints," "flashtalks" and "pitches."help students identify and share ideas aboutproblems and ideas for addressing needs.help students articulate their interests, outlinea problem and pitch possible solutions. CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TOPROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
Step 5: Prototype Experiment and Test IdeasPrototypes are early renditions of thedeliverables that comprise students'final projects. Deliverables are concrete representations of whatstudents have in mind to address theproblem. Deliverables include mockups of websites, storyboards, pilotepisodes of podcasts, scripts forvideos.In a Learner Centered PBL course,instructors give students the freedomand space to fail fast and fail early, totest out their ideas through rapidprototyping. Prototypes helpstudents to gain the context andinsight they need to go forward withconfidence.CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TO help students explore toolsand resources for creatingprototypes of their big ideashelp students choose andbegin building mock upsand prototypes of theirproposed solutions.help students preparerelated materials, overviewsand interview protocolsnecessary for sharing theirbig ideas.PROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
When we think of research, we tend to think oflibraries. It's true, locating credible sources andperusing peer reviewed articles and research studiesis crucial in helping students to take a critical look atthe issue and challenge their own assumptions. A Learner Centered PBL course integrates thisimportant work with internet research and UserExperience (UX) research. Combined, these methodsdraw on the insights of potential users. UX research takes place early, providing students thechance to consider for themselves how scholarlyresearch can support and challenge the work theyare doing in designing and completing a worthwhileproject. Step 6: Research Expand the Processwith UX help students prepare protocols andconduct interviews and focus groups.help students search and find credibleinternet sources and scholarly research.help students learn how to create anddistribute surveys.CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TOPROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
Step 7: ReflectGive Space and Time to Reconsider In a Learner Centered PBLcourse, students take time toreflect on what they've learnedand shift course when needed.During their research, students often find their audiences' realneeds are different from whatthey had assumed. Time and space to reflect onwhat they've learned from usersand through scholarly researchis key, as learners consider andreconsider how best to addressthe problems and needs of realpeople and communities.help students reflect critically ontheir UX research and considerhow these insights can be usedto find new and improvedsolutions. help students reflect on whatthey've learned and identifygaps in their research help students create a plan forthe final project grounded inthe research they've completed.PROJECTSYLLABUS.COMCREATE ASSIGNMENTS TO
Learning to work and rework our ideas is one of themost valuable lessons students learn in an LearnerCentered PBL course. As students reflect on whatthey've learned and identify necessary revisions totheir original ideas, they'll need time to implementthose changes. At this stage early prototypes withrevision begin to morph into finished deliverables,marking student's progress in completing the project. Creating space for students to revise plans, remodelprototypes and begin creating new materials inservice to the final projects is essential to turningstudents' good ideas into worthwhile and effectiveprojects.Step 8: RemodelCreate a Maker Spacehelp students identify the resourcesthey'll need to create deliverables that willfunction as benchmarks, markingstudents progress in completing theproject. help students carryout their new plan,identifying materials they'll need tocomplete the project. PROJECTSYLLABUS.COMCREATE ASSIGNMENTS TO
Step 9: Deliver Provide Guidelines for Students to Implement and Self Assess ProjectsThe hard work students dothroughout the semester culminatesin the final project. Early prototypesgive way to polished deliverables asthe project draws closer tocompletion.In the Learner Centered PBL course,students have taken ownership oftheir topics, the problem, and theproject. They are in a strong. positionto assess their work, developingsurveys and other strategies toevaluate the success of their finalprojects.CREATE ASSIGNMENTS TO help students rework theirprototypes and createdeliverables to mark theirprogress help students develop surveysand devise other strategiesfor evaluating the success oftheir culminating projects create opportunities for selfassessment and reflectionon the completed projectPROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
Want toLearn MoreAboutLearnerCenteredProjectBasedMethods? Visit ProjectSyllabus.com is an online resource hub for secondary andpost secondary instructors teaching project based learningcourses across the disciplines. PROJECTSYLLABUS.COM
JacqueLEARN MOREHi, I'm Jacque Preston, founder ofProjectSyllabus.com. Over the last decade, we’ve experienced radical shifts changes in how we live, work,and relate to one another. Our traditionalways of teaching fail us and our students.Learner Centered approaches to teachinghave never been more crucial. Join us atProject Syllabus in helping us change theface of education.At Project Syllabus, we believe we have a responsibility to help students becomeautonomous learners. A learner centered project based classroom shifts thefocus of activity from the teacher to the learners and creates the conditionsnecessary to cultivate learner autonomy. Autonomous learners are self governingand have the capacity to take charge of their own learning, in turn, helping themdevelop a sense of responsibility, self-discipline, logical intelligence,independence and self-motivation. Join Us At Project Syllabus PROJECTSYLLABUS.COMTAKE A COURSELEARN MORE