If you have been to an education conference or read a blog post in the past two years, you have probably heard the acronym PBL at some point. PBL is used to represent two very different ideas: problem based learning and project based learning.  While these to are very similar, there are specific differences that separate the two. For this post, I’ll use PBL for problem-based and PjBL for project-based.

PBL originated from medical schools and trainings. The main idea was to provide medical students with authentic tasks that mimic or simulate the real-world and better prepare them for their own patients. As a parent, and a person in general, I love this. I want my doctors, no matter their age, to come in with past experience. If they don’t know the answer, I want them to know where to find it or who to send me to. PBL gave pre-service medical professionals the opportunity to build their toolbox of knowledge and craft while still in school themselves. Some medical schools have expanded this concept, including the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine. They use a version of PBL called Case-Based Learning or Team-Based Learning. It is a very interesting concept and very authentic. If you’re interested in these areas, check out the College of Medicine’s homepage or their curriculum page.  I can also get anyone interested in contact with their lead instructional designer.

One of the leading researchers in PBL is Dr. Cindy Hmelo-Silver from Indiana University Bloomington, IN. Her research and writings, she goes into great details on the PBL process. One of my favorite overview articles written by her is Problem-Based Learning: What and How Do Students Learn? (FacultyFocus gives a great overview of this process as well). The steps for PBL are:
1)  Introduce the problem scenario – as authentic of a situation and scenario as possible
2)  Identify the facts about the problem
3)  Generate a hypothesis
4)  Identify your knowledge deficiencies
5)  Apply the current knowledge
6)  Research for new knowledge
7)  Abstraction – bring your old knowledge and new knowledge to life to solve the problem

PBL has taken over K-12 education.  It’s a hot topic and many resources exist for it. I did a quick Amazon search and found on just the first page of results the following books (all good books by the way):
Problem-Based Learning in the Physical Science Classroom
Problem-Based Learning: Welcome to the “Real World”  A Teaching Model for Adult Learners
Problem-Based Learning: An Inquiry Approach
Problem-Based Learning in the Earth and Space Science Classroom
New Approaches to Problem-Based Learning
Everyday Problem-Based Learning: Quick Projects to Build Problem Solving
Successfully Implementing Problem-Based Learning
Problem-Based Learning in the Life Science Classroom
Problem-Based Learning for Math and Science

Project-Based:
Uncommon Learning: Creating Schools that Work for Kids
Setting the Standard for Project-Based Learning: A Proven Approach to Rigorous Classroom Instruction
Hacking Project-Based Learning
Project-Based Learning Made Simple

Categories: Learning Theories