possible options on areas such as how to demonstrate one’s learning,

Many teachers are often creating menus of options for students. Not only do choices and options work to create student buy-in, they simultaneously are having more personalized experiences.  Higher forms of learning are predicated on the learner owning larger aspects of the learning itself.

Personalized learning is an educational approach that aims to customize learning for each student based on their respective interests, strengths, needs, skills, abilities, background and experiences. To go further, it’s also an effort to involve the learner in their own education.

In Project Based Learning, teachers make learning come alive for students. Students work on a project over an extended period of time – from a week up to a semester – that engages them in solving a real-world problem or answering a complex question. They demonstrate their knowledge and skills by developing a public product or presentation for a real audience. As a result, students develop deep content knowledge as well as critical thinking, creativity, and communication skills in the context of doing an authentic, meaningful project. Project Based Learning unleashes a contagious, creative energy among students and teachers.

Are we following their agenda or ours?”

I saw the signs of condescension in the audience and didn’t realize that my students could see them too.

Being a grown-up myself, I had forgotten the importance of preparing my students for interactions in an adult world. I should have told them, “Most adults will think you are cute. You will exceed most adults’ expectations. And this will look like smiling, laughing, clapping, and hugging.”

“Honestly, I really enjoyed this project. It was really fun, I learned a lot and got in a lot more reading than I’d normally read in that amount of time. I had fun making the video and the whole project was not very stressful as long as I stayed on top of my work. In the past, we’ve had projects that were very stressful with not much content being learned. This project directly contrasts to those types of projects. We learned a lot and weren’t stressed as opposed to learning very little while being stressed for no reason.

PBL project in action. The “Tiny House Project” features teacher Cheryl Bautista of Katherine Smith Elementary School, San Jose, CA and her third graders.