Reflecting on My Learning - EDTECH 542

This semester has been eye-opening for me in terms of the big idea of project-based learning.  At the beginning of the semester, I came in with what I thought was a background in PBL implementation and expected to learn how to better develop PBL units.  I quickly discovered that the definition of PBL was actually thematic units and that true PBL should be focused on a problem that needs to be addressed guided by a driving question.  I think that making this realization right away helped me to open my mind to learning as much as I could about the development of PBL units.  I had no idea that the process of planning PBL was so intensive.  I have learned how to plan a project step by step from developing driving questions, to creating assessments that evaluate standards, to developing opportunities for reflection throughout the project and upon project completion.  I learned so much more than I thought I would at the beginning of the course because I realized up front that I didn't know as much as I thought I did.

I think my strongest understanding of project based learning now is the purpose behind it.  I now know that the core of any PBL unit is the driving question which focuses on a problem that needs to be solved.  All phases of a project should tie back to the driving question in an attempt to address or answer it.  For me, the most difficult part of PBL to incorporate is assessment.  Making sure that adequate formative and summative assessments are part of the project and ensuring that all standards are assessed at some point in the project is a very complex process.  I feel like I am prone to forgetting something when planning assessment.

This school year, my school will again be incorporating PBL Fridays.  While this means that our integration of PBL is not a constant, I think it is still a good start in the process.  I think there are many teachers in my school operating with the same misunderstanding of PBL that I had coming into this course.  I have been in communication with my principal throughout the summer about the things I have learned in this course and we hope to establish professional development opportunities for staff utilizing resources from the BIE website.  I look forward to assisting others to develop a skills-set in PBL as I continue to develop mine.