Background
As I’ve mentioned in previous post, I’ve spent the past two years integrating more PBL units into my classroom. Last year, though, I think I started doing PBL the “right way.” With some inspiration from my admin and the push of a colleague I began handing more control to my students and acting more as a facilitator. We began planning with the help of Ross Cooper’s planning template which helped us lay the groundwork for two very successful units.
One unit that I felt I needed to improve was my economics unit. Economics fell to the end of the year when everything gets hectic. By that point in the year, I didn’t feel like we had enough time to do a strong PBL unit so instead we covered the concepts utilizing whole group discussions, videos, and role playing. None of these strategies I felt did a great job of giving students voice, instructing to higher-order thinking, or teaching to multiple pathways. They taught basic concepts, but it wasn’t engaging. I knew it needed more pizzazz.
PBL in Economics
One of my big goals this year is to be sure to pace my instruction better to ensure economics doesn’t fall to the final two weeks of the school year. In an economics PBL unit students will be researching different global economies to learn about important concepts like goods vs services, producers vs consumers, and systems of exchange. They’ll be tracking their learning in Pages and comparing parts they like and dislike about economic systems. They’ll be identifying problems in some economies, but also brainstorming how those problems could be fixed.
After researching and deciding on their favorite parts of economic systems, students will be creating their own nation’s economy. They will have to decide what resources will be available, what jobs people will have, how will people act as producers and consumers, and how can they acquire resources from other nations. Finally, they will choose how to present their new economy at a “United Nations” event. They can present it by creating a video, Podcast with a visual aid, Infographic, or any other medium they choose. We’ll invite families, staff, and administration into learn about each nation and then vote which place they would most like to live.
I like this project because it will be meeting all 7 ISTE Standards for Students by giving students freedom and creativity to learn important global concepts and display their learning in a way that makes sense to them. In Ronald J. Newell’s Passion for Learning he says that through project-based learning students can make a commitment to transform their attitudes and beliefs which will lead them to higher expectations for themselves and society (pg. 9). Students will be able to have a voice, be learning basic concepts and expanding it to higher level thinking, and be learning in a way that makes sense to them. By focusing on these aspects I’m confident this learning experience will be more meaningful and memorable.
References:
Cooper, R. (2016, December 18). Hacking PBL. Retrieved July 16, 2018, from https://rosscoops31.com/hackingpbl/
ISTE Standards for STUDENTS. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2018, from https://www.iste.org/standards/for-students
Newell, R. J. (2006). Passion for learning: How project-based learning meets the needs of 21st century students. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Education.
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