EPISODE 2: What the Heck is PBL? Suzie Boss and John Larmer, Bestselling PBL Authors, Share Why PBL Works for Students

In this episode, Laureen and Stanley will be speaking with John Larmer and Suzie Boss — best-selling authors and long-time PBL practitioners! John is a frequent writer on the topic of PBL and education. He’s also a former educator, a long-time champion for making education more engaging and meaningful for students, and the Editor in Chief at PBLWorks! Suzie is a writer, education consultant, and national faculty member at PBLWorks. She is a passionate advocate for Project Based Learning. Together, Suzie and John share their insights about PBL. They discuss how PBL is different from other methods of teaching and the research evidence that shows why and how PBL works for students. They also shed light on some common PBL challenges and how to overcome them, and they provide advice on how teachers can ease into Project Based Learning in their classrooms.   Key Takeaways: [:01] About the The Project podcast. [:30] About today’s guests, John Larmer and Suzie Boss. [1:05] Laureen and Stanley welcome their guests. [1:14] John and Suzie describe what PBL is. [2:05] John and Suzie both share how they first got interested in Project Based Learning. [3:03] How is PBL different from other methods of teaching? [5:31] Who is doing PBL out in the world right now? [7:40] Why do John and Suzie think more schools are not doing PBL? What are some of the challenges that adopting PBL presents? [9:40] The difference between simply doing projects in a classroom and PBL. [11:05] What is the origin story of PBL? [12:12] Problem-based learning vs. Project Based Learning. [14:10] John and Suzie highlight some of the research evidence that shows PBL works for students. [16:28] Does PBL work in all contexts with all demographics? [18:26] John and Suzie provide advice about the first steps one should take to begin implementing Project Based Learning.   Mentioned in This Episode: PBLWorks Stanley Richards, PBLWorks staff Laureen Adams, PBLWorks staff John Larmer, PBLWorks staff Suzie Boss, PBLWorks National Faculty What is PBL? The Research on PBL PBL Projects & Resources Getting Started with PBL Setting the Standard for Project Based Learning, by John Larmer and Suzie Boss Project Based Teaching, by John Larmer and Suzie Boss   Twitter Quotes (for Social Media Use):   “[PBL] is different from other methods of teaching because it is active; it’s not passive.” — John Larmer   “The research on PBL is really positive when it’s done right.” — John Larmer   “Adapting an existing project might be a way to jump-start your experience with PBL.”  — John Larmer   “When [students] have that opportunity to really wrestle and come to [their] own understanding, that’s when the learning is going to stick.” — Suzie Boss   “All students deserve the opportunity for the learning experience that happens in PBL.” — Suzie Boss   “Our advice is often to start small. You don’t have to do a year-long or a semester-long project to give your students, and yourself, a taste of what PBL is all about.” — Suzie Boss