Unit Projects, Standard PBL, or APLEs?

I have a Google alert set to #PBL, #project-based_learning, #authentic_learning, and #community-based_learning. Daily, I receive an in-box dose of the latest published articles on the web about each topic. The vast majority of these news releases and editorials fall into the category of what we at Project ARC call "standard PBL," while some are mere "unit projects." It is a rarity to find an authentic project-learning experience, or what we call "APLEs."

Here's my review of some of the recent articles that have popped up as a Google alert and how we rate these "PBL" experiences at Project ARC.

Unit Project:

Students who participated in ChemFEST at the East Side Charter School in Wilmington, Delaware, partnered with employees at Chemours to learn about chemistry, math, physics, and engineering. Lessons regarding the science behind everyday objects were the goal of this program. These students then made slime, built geodesic domes, and constructed catapults out of popsicle sticks.

These are common activities that we see labeled as "PBL." While we know this example was during a festival of learning, these tasks are similar to unit projects that happen after the learning has occurred regarding specific concepts or topics. In fact, teachers generally refer to these unit projects as "PBL activities" or "PBL tasks." Most often, these activities fall into the levels of understanding and application in Bloom's.

We do like that these learners were afforded the opportunity to partner with technical experts from Chemours. And, we are thrilled that companies such as Chemours are eager to form these types of partnerships. However, we are excited to realize the full potential of these partnerships through our community mapping options.

Standard PBL:

Learners in the Venture program at Lin-Mar High School, near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, wrote children's books about science concepts such as earthquakes and tornadoes. The goal was to showcase what the 9th-graders learned about the scientific concepts. And, while the learners presented the books to the elementary schools in the district, the information contained in those books was still low-level content shared in a more engaging format.

This example is what we, at Project ARC, call a research paper in disguise. The thinking required to complete a standard PBL experience is generally at the application, analysis, or evaluation levels. However, the level can also be much lower, as in this case. While the students were "creating" a children's book, since the class was a science class, the standards for science were not at the creation level and were instead at the understanding level.

We admit that sharing with the audience of elementary students increases engagement for those crafting the books, and we commend these teachers for taking this extra step. We also note that the design-class learners who crafted the illustrations reached the creation level of Bloom's for this project. In addition to increasing the level of thinking for the science learners, we would have also liked to have seen a connection with technical experts who could have provided feedback in this learning experience.

APLE:

First-grade learners at Foose Elementary School in Harrisburg, PA, analyzed different problems within their community and decided they needed to tackle the issue of no public libraries within proximity to the school. The kiddos wrote letters to the principal to receive permission to construct a little free library on the school property, and they designed the structure that now sits in front of the school.

This example took the first graders into the creation level of Bloom's. There was an identified problem that the learners solved. Moreover, the learners had an audience outside of their classroom peers and teacher. This social studies-focused project taught them about civic issues and incorporated ELA writing skills and math skills related to the architecture design of the little library. Thus, this is the closest example to an APLE that we've seen recently.

Of course, all learning experiences have room for improvement, and as you can see from the Learning ARC rubric below, at Project ARC, we prefer to so see our learners engage with technical experts from the real world. In this case, a librarian, a carpenter, or a local government official would have been great options for this interaction. Any one of these technical experts could have provided formative feedback along the way.

The Results:

It isn't surprising to find returns such as the examples I described above. After all, I wrote my dissertation on similar findings that reviewed 747 studies of so-called "PBL" experiences. My returns found that only 21% of those touted as PBL in the literature are APLEs. Comparatively, the majority of the work fell into the "standard PBL" category.

Currently, at Project ARC, we are offering several pathways for APLE support to ensure your "PBL" experiences are truly APLEs.

1) APLE Bites online course offering as either a self-paced experience or a facilitated group experience. In either case, you receive a dedicated Project ARC coach to provide you with targeted feedback during every scaffolded learning activity. As a bonus, you will also learn best online practices for teaching virtually!

2) Starting this spring, we will be offering APLE designs with a dedicated Project ARC coach. We will have a variety of content areas and grade levels available, so be on the lookout for our launch announcement after the new year. And, if you're interested in being a project coach for one of these APLEs, send us your information! Here are the details, and don't worry, even though the job listing is "closed" due to the maximum number of applicants allowed via LinkedIn, we are still accepting applications. Just be sure to read the entire job post listing to see if you qualify and the requirements for consideration.