PBL - Powerful, Brave Learning. We can all be doing this...Why did we start?2019 was the first year I coached a Year 12 & 13 problem based learning course (PBL). 'Launch' arose from the engagement and wellbeing needs of the current students at OGHS. Student voice and teacher classroom observations revealed that:
Why go through with it?Believe me, there are some days I asked myself, "why did I decide to do this again?!" But my own response always quickly followed - because we have to. Because the purpose of school is different now that it used to be (or it should be!). "Doing school" by following the old formula is no longer going to set our kids up for success. There are, of course, a great many skills we teach that are still just as useful and valuable today as they always have been. But there are also a number that are not. As I said in a previous post - above all, we are all teachers of learning. We may have subject specialities, but if you're determined to teach your subject to the exclusion of all others, and teach using "pure" methods the way you were taught in the past, then you are doing a disservice to the next generation, where the world does not work like that anymore. We know what employers already want: essential skills or capabilities that transcend all subject or knowledge silos. Things like innovation, creativity, collaboration, resilience, mental fitness skills, problem solving skills etc. THESE are what our learning programmes need to be built around. The holy grail of "knowledge" that education used to be founded upon no longer really exists. Knowledge creation, re-imagination of old concepts, cross-pollination of ideas, taking risks, seeing things differently, challenging the status quo... this is what is driving us forward into the future. THIS is what our students need to know how to do to succeed not only in the future workplace (or the current one!), but in their future lives. Let me be straight up about the challenges... & share some tipsYou may well be 'the lone nut' It took people quite a while to understand what this PBL course was (some still aren't too sure) and required many explanations, sharing of student voice, presentations etc.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it", is something you may hear
Doing well at school is a FINITE game. Gaining an amazing education? That's an INFINITE game, and that's the game my students and I are playing." (credit to Simon Sinek for the "infinite game" concept here) People may well feel threatened by or uncomfortable with your concept
Some things I found helpful to doHold interviews
Prioritising ESSENTIAL SKILLS over NCEA credits should be non-negotiable
People not understanding that this is an "Academic" and challenging subject
Overseeing multiple projects and internal assessments.
The benefits outweigh all the challenges!Confidence, leadership, resilience, problem solving skills... Seeing immense personal growth in my students made everything worth it. Girls who spoke at barely a whisper at the start of the year, cold-called people, made pitches to industry experts, spoke at full school assemblies and presented their year's work to an audience of almost 100 parents, friends and employers from the local community. I saw remarkable transformations. I have learned so much I know more about so many more subjects in the NZC than ever before. I have developed my agile skills, my project management skills (Launch has been my personal PBL project, just like the students have had theirs), and my pitching skills (I have had to "sell" this to a lot of people!) The "risk" was worth it I put myself out there and made myself vulnerable to scrutiny, "naysayers" etc, but deep down, I wasn't worried about the students because we were all on the same page from the start. It was never about the NCEA credits (although everyone did very well indeed, as it turns out), it was about them getting the chance to drive their own learning, pursue their own passions, explore different ways of learning and achieving outcomes, and experiencing personal challenges and pushing themselves out of their own comfort zones. And in that regard I can say without hesitation that Launch was a huge success. Join the movement!Connect with me on twitter or LinkedIn. I'm happy to support you to start your own PBL course or share methods, pedagogy etc with you. You can also contact me at [email protected]
1 Comment
harrisn
1/8/2023 09:40:28 am
thats me
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AuthorsRowan Taigel is the Launch Coach at Nayland College. Launch NayCol is a 2nd half year module for yr 9 students in 2023. Archives
July 2023
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