According to the Buck Institute for Education (www.bie.org) Project Based Learning 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 engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge. Essential Project Design Elements include:
This educational paradigm fits neatly into the scope and study of elementary music educators. With the simultaneous demands to teach a prescribed curriculum while also presenting high-quality performance experiences for students (and local audiences), combined with the usual time constraints of seeing the students on less than a daily basis, Project Based Learning can be a strong solution that satisfies both curricular and performance needs in unique, customized, and innovative ways. Students learn key knowledge and skills, pose a challenging question, have opportunities for sustained inquiry, engage in authentic tasks, have voice and choice in their projects, have ample occasion to reflect, critique, and revise, and are able to display the final product publicly through various means.
PBL is an efficient approach to teach curricular strands while working on a meaningful, open-ended, real world project. The students find this work highly engaging, fun, and relevant to their life outside of the classroom. This website serves to introduce the educator to a project that can teach cross-curricular strands in a way that is at once engaging to the learners, accessible, contains opportunities for assessment at every level, and results in learning at a deeper level that connects directly to the world outside of the classroom.
- Key Knowledge, Understanding, and Success Skills - The project is focused on student learning goals, including standards-based content and skills such as critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, and self-management.
- Challenging Problem or Question - The project is framed by a meaningful problem to solve or a question to answer, at the appropriate level of challenge.
- Sustained Inquiry - Students engage in a rigorous, extended process of asking questions, finding resources, and applying information.
- Authenticity - The project features real-world context, tasks and tools, quality standards, or impact – or speaks to students’ personal concerns, interests, and issues in their lives.
- Student Voice & Choice - Students make some decisions about the project, including how they work and what they create.
- Reflection - Students and teachers reflect on learning, the effectiveness of their inquiry and project activities, the quality of student work, obstacles and how to overcome them.
- Critique & Revision - Students give, receive, and use feedback to improve their process and products.
- Public Product - Students make their project work public by explaining, displaying and/or presenting it to people beyond the classroom.
This educational paradigm fits neatly into the scope and study of elementary music educators. With the simultaneous demands to teach a prescribed curriculum while also presenting high-quality performance experiences for students (and local audiences), combined with the usual time constraints of seeing the students on less than a daily basis, Project Based Learning can be a strong solution that satisfies both curricular and performance needs in unique, customized, and innovative ways. Students learn key knowledge and skills, pose a challenging question, have opportunities for sustained inquiry, engage in authentic tasks, have voice and choice in their projects, have ample occasion to reflect, critique, and revise, and are able to display the final product publicly through various means.
PBL is an efficient approach to teach curricular strands while working on a meaningful, open-ended, real world project. The students find this work highly engaging, fun, and relevant to their life outside of the classroom. This website serves to introduce the educator to a project that can teach cross-curricular strands in a way that is at once engaging to the learners, accessible, contains opportunities for assessment at every level, and results in learning at a deeper level that connects directly to the world outside of the classroom.