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And finally here is my certificate for attending this MOOC.............................

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And finally here is my certificate for attending this MOOC.............................

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Thanks for reading my diary.....................looking forward to the next journey !

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I have come to the end.  I wish to thank all the people who worked with us: the tutors online and also the teachers.
This has been a great journey into PBL!
TIZIANA ANGIOLINI

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4.7  COURSE SELF-ASSESSMENT  AND FINAL THOUGHT

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4.7  COURSE SELF-ASSESSMENT  AND FINAL THOUGHT

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I have learnt a lot and I workeded online with a great community of learners. It was a pleasure to see how teachers are willing to learn and help other learners. It is going to become of the most important ones I have ever had.
Here you can find my presentation online about what I have done and learnt thanks to the many people who worked for and in this MOOC
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1CWV8woXRJ8XhyHuoxUSY5xK-q54Kmon-oRahn1y7IGo/edit?usp=sharing

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Project Based Learning   Reflecting and Sharing ideas about what we have learnt 

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4.6 WEBINAR- FLIP YOUR STUDENTS' ROLE IN PBL

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4.6 WEBINAR- FLIP YOUR STUDENTS' ROLE IN PBL

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I watched the webinar on 5th July:  it was a great source for activities and I could learn more about how to implement PBL.

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Flip your student's role in Project Based Learning

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This video is the second webinar of the Project Based Learning course from the Teacher Academy Platform. The webinar was about "Developing entrepreneurial skills". For more information, visit the website: http://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/

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THIS IS THE LINK TO MY PROJECT CREATED BY USING THE TOOL THE LEARNING DESIGNER
https://v.gd/StUDNl

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4.5 MY PBL LEARNING DESIGN  - THIS WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING SO FARE

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4.5 MY PBL LEARNING DESIGN  - THIS WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING SO FARE

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In the last 3 weeks we have:
identified a class and subject with which we want to implement PBL

identified a driving question and received feedback on it

created a PBL Learning Design and received feedback on the design, which so far includes

aims, learning outcomes, short description

activities that support group work and the development of collaborative skills

activities that scaffold for student independence and ownership

In this final week we  have  been asked to embed numerous assessment activities throughout your design. The activities should be short and immediate such as those explored in section 4.2 but some also more comprehensive and in the form of peer assessment. They can be formative or summative and would ideally make reference to a rubric.
As a final step, we had to  make sure to finalise the design with further activities (TLAs) so that it becomes a rounded and rigorous design that follows as much as possible the features of an effective PBL as identified in the Project Design Rubric by the Buck Institute of Education. The criteria used for the driving question and TLAs in the previous P2P activities were based on this rubric. Finally we had to Make sure that the final Design will help you to implement PBL in your classroom next school year but at the same time is clear enough for an outsider to understand what you are planning to do.

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CREATING A FINAL SURVAY  BY USING GOOGLE FORMS

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CREATING A FINAL SURVAY  BY USING GOOGLE FORMS

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This is my final survey which I have  created for my students and the PBL which I am going to share with you.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1IRJLiNn915DRJmXbirM6RhDUdvNSAxbXSqsDQvw2IR4/edit?usp=sharing

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http://skypeinschool.wikispaces.com/file/view/Skype-call-learning-call-1.pdf/297252968/Skype-call-learning-call-1.pdf
I was favourably impressed by SKYPE and I think it could really help me work with other classes and it could also help us connect with the outside world!
A CULTURAL EXPERIENCE!

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Behind the Scenes: Microsoft Global Education Skype-a-Thon 2015

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When you take away the walls of a classroom, learning becomes limitless. Thanks to you and thousands of other students and educators who traveled the world on December 3rd and 4th, we far exceeded our goal, reaching an astounding 3 million virtual miles by the end of the event.

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RUBRICS..........MANY TOOLS ONLINE  TO CREATE GREAT RUBRICS

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RUBRICS..........MANY TOOLS ONLINE  TO CREATE GREAT RUBRICS

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We can find plenty of tools for thinking about rubrics and evaluation:
http://bie.org/objects/cat/rubrics

http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php

http://de.slideshare.net/cedecite/documents
I also found this interesting and easy tool online:
http://www.rubric-maker.com/?utm_campaign=ce_rubmkr_callout&utm_source=ce&utm_medium=ce_callout
Here is the link to some rubrics shared by the other learners

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ABSZAZ2WWqb2JqJJOWI_hT5L9WOFvbrTWt3tFYZYXqQ/edit?pref=2&pli=1#gid=396408685

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MODULE 4.4 Creating & Using Rubrics for PBL
Assessment

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MODULE 4.4 Creating & Using Rubrics for PBL
Assessment

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DEFINTION OF RUBRIC : "A rubric is typically an evaluation tool or set of guidelines used to promote the consistent application of learning expectations, learning objectives, or learning standards in the classroom, or to measure their attainment against a consistent set of criteria. In instructional settings, rubrics clearly define academic expectations for students and help to ensure consistency in the evaluation of academic work from student to student, assignment to assignment, or course to course. Rubrics are also used as scoring instruments to determine grades or the degree to which learning standards have been demonstrated or attained by students."
From http://edglossary.org/rubric/

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It is useful and it can help other students: we learn from the others. It can be more  engaging and easier for students . This is our padlet where we discussed this important issue.
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/434s43a5a81p
FROM THE SHARED PADLET
I have experienced peer assessment in many Moocs and I must confess that with courses like this one it has been positive while with other Moocs I was not given positive support or people did not always follow the grid... a lot of people complained in the past.
As a teacher I have used peer assessment in  group presentations  and I must say that I made a mistake as I did not agree on the way the students were assessed. They did not work well and if we had built the grids they would have understood how grids work.  Now I present grids before they start assessing other people's tasks and I explain why I chose some items.  Usually my students provide positive feedback while and after doing  a task. Peer assessment must be taught and shared but it can change the learning situation.   Some years ago I was in Ireland and I was working with other teachers and most of  the feedback was based on  peer evaluation. It worked well.

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MODULE 4.3. PEER ASSESSMENT AND THE  LADDER OF  FEEDBACK

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MODULE 4.3. PEER ASSESSMENT AND THE  LADDER OF  FEEDBACK

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VIDEO ABOUT  PEER ASSESSMENT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqWCJZH8ziQ
It seems to be easy for getting them more  engaged and they are learning.

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MODULE 4.3   ASSESSMENT- PEER ASSESSMENT FOR PBL

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MODULE 4.3   ASSESSMENT- PEER ASSESSMENT FOR PBL

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An interesting video about  peer assessment!

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0:00 / 2:30•Watch full video

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http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/assessment/20-simple-assessment-strategies-can-use-every-day/

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20 Simple Assessment Strategies You Can Use Every Day
contributed by Saga Briggs

The ultimate goal of teaching is understanding.

But sometimes it's easier to talk than to teach, as we all know, especially when we need to cover a lot of material in a short amount of time. We hope students will understand, if not now then before test time, and we keep our fingers crossed that their results will indicate we've done our job.

The problem is, we often rely on these tests to measure understanding and then we move on. There isn't always time to address weaknesses and misunderstandings after the tests have been graded, and the time to help students learn through strategies to ask great questions is gone.

Below are 22 simple assessment strategies and tips to help you become more frequent in your teaching, planning, and curriculum design.

Book TeachThought Professional Development for training on assessment practices that grow teachers
22 Simple Assessment Strategies & Tips You Can Use Every Day 1. An open-ended question that gets them writing/talking
Avoid yes/no questions and phrases like "Does this make sense?" In response to these questions, students usually answer 'yes.' So, of course, it's surprising when several students later admit that they're lost.

To help students grasp ideas in class, ask open-ended questions that require students that get students writing/talking. They will undoubtedly reveal more than you would've thought to ask directly.
2. Ask students to reflect
During the last five minutes of class ask students to reflect on the lesson and write down what they've learned. Then, ask them to consider how they would apply this concept or skill in a practical setting.
3. Use quizzes
Give a short quiz at the end of class to check for comprehension.
4. Ask students to summarize
Have students summarize or paraphrase important concepts and lessons. This can be done orally, visually, or otherwise.
5. Hand signals
Hand signals can be used to rate or indicate students' understanding of content. Students can show anywhere from five fingers to signal maximum understanding to one finger to signal minimal understanding. This strategy requires engagement by all students and allows the teacher to check for understanding within a large group.
6. Response cards
Index cards, signs, whiteboards, magnetic boards, or other items are simultaneously held up by all students in class to indicate their response to a question or problem presented by the teacher. Using response devices, the teacher can easily note the responses of individual students while teaching the whole group.
7. Four corners
A quick and easy snapshot of student understanding, Four Corners provides an opportunity for student movement while permitting the teacher to monitor and assess understanding.

The teacher poses a question or makes a statement. Students then move to the appropriate corner of the classroom to indicate their response to the prompt. For example, the corner choices might include "I strongly agree," "I strongly disagree," "I agree somewhat," and "I'm not sure."
8. Think-pair-share
Students take a few minutes to think about the question or prompt. Next, they pair with a designated partner to compare thoughts before sharing with the whole class.
9. Choral reading
Students mark text to identify a particular concept and chime in, reading the marked text aloud in unison with the teacher. This strategy helps students develop fluency; differentiate between the reading of statements and questions; and practice phrasing, pacing, and reading dialogue.
10. One question quiz
Ask a single focused question with a specific goal that can be answered within a minute or two. You can quickly scan the written responses to assess student understanding.
11. Socratic seminar
Students ask questions of one another about an essential question, topic, or selected text. The questions initiate a conversation that continues with a series of responses and additional questions. Students learn to formulate questions that address issues to facilitate their own discussion and arrive at a new understanding.
12. 3-2-1
Students consider what they have learned by responding to the following prompt at the end of the lesson: 3) things they learned from your lesson; 2) things they want to know more about; and 1) questions they have. The prompt stimulates student reflection on the lesson and helps to process the learning.
13. Ticket out the door
Students write in response to a specific prompt for a short period of time. Teachers collect their responses as a "ticket out the door" to check for students' understanding of a concept taught. This exercise quickly generates multiple ideas that could be turned into longer pieces of writing at a later time.
14. Journal reflections
Students write their reflections on a lesson, such as what they learned, what caused them difficulty, strategies they found helpful, or other lesson-related topics. Students can reflect on and process lessons. By reading student work-especially - types of learning journals that help students think- teachers can identify class and individual misconceptions and successes. (See also
15. Formative pencil-paper assessment
Students respond individually to short, pencil-paper formative assessments of skills and knowledge taught in the lesson. Teachers may elect to have students self-correct. The teacher collects assessment results to monitor individual student progress and to inform future instruction.

Both student and teacher can quickly assess whether the student acquired the intended knowledge and skills. This is a formative assessment, so a grade is not the intended purpose.
16. Misconception check
Present students with common or predictable misconceptions about a concept you're covering. Ask them whether they agree or disagree and to explain why.
17. Analogy prompt
Teaching with analogies can be powerful. Periodically, present students with an analogy prompt: "the concept being covered is like ____ because ____."
18. Practice frequency
Check for understanding at least three times a lesson, minimum.
19. Use variety
Teachers should use enough different individual and whole group techniques to check understanding that they accurately know what all students know. More than likely, this means during a single class the same technique should not be repeated.
20. Make it useful
The true test is whether or not you can adjust your course or continue as planned based on the information received in each check. Do you need to stop and start over? Pull a few students aside for three minutes to re-teach? Or move on?
21. Peer instruction
Perhaps the most accurate way to check for understanding is to have one student try to teach another student what she's learned . If she can do that successfully, it's clear she understood your lesson.
22. "Separate what you do and don't understand"
Whether making a t-chart, drawing a concept map, or using some other means, have the students not simply list what they think they know, but what they don't know as well. This won't be as simple as it sounds-we're usually not aware of what we don't know.

They'll also often know more or less than they can identify themselves, which makes this strategy a bit crude. But that's okay-the goal isn't for them to be precise and complete in their self-evaluation the goal is for you to gain insight as to what they do and don't know.

And seeing what they can even begin to articulate on their own is an excellent starting point here.
This post was written by Saga Briggins and was first publish by on opencolleges.edu.au; 20 Simple Assessment Strategies You Can Use Every Day

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20 Simple Assessment Strategies You Can Use Every Day

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20 Simple Assessment Strategies You Can Use Every Day contributed by Saga Briggs The ultimate goal of teaching is understanding. But sometimes it's easier to talk than to teach, as we all know, especially when we need to cover a lot of material in a short amount of time.

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MODULE 4.2 Embedding Assessment into PBL

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MODULE 4.2 Embedding Assessment into PBL

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Embedding Assessment Throughout the Project: Keys to PBL Series Part 5

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4.1 Teachmeet - Mon 27th June 18:30h
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l68jJEZ0d8
It was an interesting webinar! Lots of ideas and plenty of interesting tools worth checking! Thanks for uploading the pdfs.

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MODULE 4  WHAT IS ASSESSMENT? WHAT OTHER TEACHERS THINK ?

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MODULE 4  WHAT IS ASSESSMENT? WHAT OTHER TEACHERS THINK ?

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https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/vwl69jclptmk

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MODULE 4  REFLECTING ON  ASSESSMENT IN THE SCHOOL WHERE I AM TEACHING NOW

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MODULE 4  REFLECTING ON  ASSESSMENT IN THE SCHOOL WHERE I AM TEACHING NOW

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I  FEEL I  AM LONELY  WHILE I WOULD LIKE TO WORK
WITH THE OTHERS
I teach in a secondary school and in some way we are free to test our  students during the school year. I usually choose a variety of tasks from grammar tests to guided production to reading tasks. I like to use some materials from CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS. For the listening tasks I usually  use the material provided by the publisher or I search online- usually  PET or  FCE  tasks.
I have informal assessment also based on homework, speaking  activities and if possible on  projects or group work.
I teach English but if  I were teaching in some other  schools English would be tested at the end of the fifth year- the final one- with a written task which is the same in the schools. The task is usually a written task with some production and some reading related to the the topics students have studied or to the news events and they are expected to be commenting.
So far I have not had any standardized task for my students.  I teach in a vocational school and the low levels of  my  students makes my teaching  a hard task but  I  try to work on the 4 skills.( READING, WRITING, LISTENING and SPEAKING).
As regards the way we work, again  I  must admit that it depends on the type of school where you are teaching. It is a pity that we do not collaborate or share materials. I lost my job last year and I was asked to start working in the one  where I am currently working. Honestly, we do not work together and do not share any mid -term tasks. I wish we could work together but this way of working doesn't seem to meet the  interestests of the teachers who are teaching English  like me.
We only plan the syllabus and we do share readings from the book. This is not  enough and this is the reason why I do not love working here.  I  feel lonely. We should collaborate and support other  teachers.

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THE ROOT OF THE WORD "ASSESSMENT"

IS FROM THE LATIN "ASSIDERE"

WHICH MEANS "TO SIT BESIDE"
Assessment should not only be about giving a grade at the end but it should be an on-going process, where teachers and students alike assess their learning as they work on the projects.

ASSESSMENT IS  PLENTY OF THINGS.......................
JUST CHECK ONLINE AND SEE WHAT IT IMPLIES

http://edglossary.org/assessment/

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In education, the term assessment refers to the wide variety of methods or tools that educators use to evaluate, measure, and document the academic readiness, learning progress, skill acquisition, or educational needs of students.

While assessments are often equated with traditional tests-especially the standardized tests developed by testing companies and administered to large populations of students-educators use a diverse array of assessment tools and methods to measure everything from a four-year-old's readiness for kindergarten to a twelfth-grade student's comprehension of advanced physics. Just as academic lessons have different functions, assessments are typically designed to measure specific elements of learning-e.g., the level of knowledge a student already has about the concept or skill the teacher is planning to teach or the ability to comprehend and analyze different types of texts and readings. Assessments also are used to identify individual student weaknesses and strengths so that educators can provide specialized academic support, educational programming, or social services. In addition, assessments are developed by a wide array of groups and individuals, including teachers, district administrators, universities, private companies, state departments of education, and groups that include a combination of these individuals and institutions.

While assessment can take a wide variety of forms in education, the following descriptions provide a representative overview of a few major forms of educational assessment.

Assessments are used for a wide variety of purposes in schools and education systems:

High-stakes assessments are typically standardized tests used for the purposes of accountability-i.e., any attempt by federal, state, or local government agencies to ensure that students are enrolled in effective schools and being taught by effective teachers. In general, "high stakes" means that important decisions about students, teachers, schools, or districts are based on the scores students achieve on a high-stakes test, and either punishments (sanctions, penalties, reduced funding, negative publicity, not being promoted to the next grade, not being allowed to graduate) or accolades (awards, public celebration, positive publicity, bonuses, grade promotion, diplomas) result from those scores. For a more detailed discussion, see .

Pre-assessments are administered before students begin a lesson, unit, course, or academic program. Students are not necessarily expected to know most, or even any, of the material evaluated by pre-assessments-they are generally used to (1) establish a baseline against which educators measure learning progress over the duration of a program, course, or instructional period, or (2) determine general academic readiness for a course, program, grade level, or new academic program that student may be transferring into.

Formative assessments are in-process evaluations of student learning that are typically administered multiple times during a unit, course, or academic program. The general purpose of formative assessment is to give educators in-process feedback about what students are learning or not learning so that instructional approaches, teaching materials, and academic support can be modified accordingly. Formative assessments are usually not scored or graded, and they may take a variety of forms, from more formal quizzes and assignments to informal questioning techniques and in-class discussions with students.

Summative assessments are used to evaluate student learning at the conclusion of a specific instructional period-typically at the end of a unit, course, semester, program, or school year. Summative assessments are typically scored and graded tests, assignments, or projects that are used to determine whether students have learned what they were expected to learn during the defined instructional period.

Formative assessments are commonly said to be for learning because educators use the results to modify and improve teaching techniques during an instructional period, while summative assessments are said to be of learning because they evaluate academic achievement at the conclusion of an instructional period. Or as assessment expert Paul Black put it, "When the cook tastes the soup, that's formative assessment. When the customer tastes the soup, that's summative assessment."

Interim assessments are used to evaluate where students are in their learning progress and determine whether they are on track to performing well on future assessments, such as standardized tests, end-of-course exams, and other forms of "summative" assessment. Interim assessments are usually administered periodically during a course or school year (for example, every six or eight weeks) and separately from the process of instructing students (i.e., unlike formative assessments, which are integrated into the instructional process).

Placement assessments are used to "place" students into a course, course level, or academic program. For example, an assessment may be used to determine whether a student is ready for Algebra I or a higher-level algebra course, such as an honors-level course. For this reason, placement assessments are administered before a course or program begins, and the basic intent is to match students with appropriate learning experiences that address their distinct learning needs.

Screening assessments are used to determine whether students may need specialized assistance or services, or whether they are ready to begin a course, grade level, or academic program. Screening assessments may take a wide variety of forms in educational settings, and they may be developmental, physical, cognitive, or academic. A preschool screening test, for example, may be used to determine whether a young child is physically, emotionally, socially, and intellectually ready to begin preschool, while other screening tests may be used to evaluate health, potential learning disabilities, and other student attributes.

Assessments are also designed in a variety of ways for different purposes:

Standardized assessments are designed, administered, and scored in a standard, or consistent, manner. They often use a multiple-choice format, though some include open-ended, short-answer questions. Historically, standardized tests featured rows of ovals that students filled in with a number-two pencil, but increasingly the tests are computer-based. Standardized tests can be administered to large student populations of the same age or grade level in a state, region, or country, and results can be compared across individuals and groups of students. For a more detailed discussion, see standardized test.

Standards-referenced or standards-based assessments are designed to measure how well students have mastered the specific knowledge and skills described in local, state, or national learning standards. Standardized tests and high-stakes tests may or may not be based on specific learning standards, and individual schools and teachers may develop their own standards-referenced or standards-based assessments. For a more detailed discussion, see proficiency-based learning.

Common assessments are used in a school or district to ensure that all teachers are evaluating student performance in a more consistent, reliable, and effective manner. Common assessments are used to encourage greater consistency in teaching and assessment among teachers who are responsible for teaching the same content, e.g. within a grade level, department, or content area. They allow educators to compare performance results across multiple classrooms, courses, schools, and/or learning experiences (which is not possible when educators teach different material and individually develop their own distinct assessments). Common assessments share the same format and are administered in consistent ways-e.g., teachers give students the same instructions and the same amount of time to complete the assessment, or they use the same scoring guides to interpret results. Common assessments may be "formative" or "summative." For more detailed discussions, see coherent curriculum and rubric.

Performance assessments typically require students to complete a complex task, such as a writing assignment, science experiment, speech, presentation, performance, or long-term project, for example. Educators will often use collaboratively developed common assessments, scoring guides, rubrics, and other methods to evaluate whether the work produced by students shows that they have learned what they were expected to learn. Performance assessments may also be called "authentic assessments," since they are considered by some educators to be more accurate and meaningful evaluations of learning achievement than traditional tests. For more detailed discussions, see authentic learning, demonstration of learning, and .

Portfolio-based assessments are collections of academic work-for example, assignments, lab results, writing samples, speeches, student-created films, or art projects-that are compiled by students and assessed by teachers in consistent ways. Portfolio-based assessments are often used to evaluate a "body of knowledge"-i.e., the acquisition of diverse knowledge and skills over a period of time. Portfolio materials can be collected in physical or digital formats, and they are often evaluated to determine whether students have met required learning standards. For a more detailed discussion, see portfolio.

The purpose of an assessment generally drives the way it is designed, and there are many ways in which assessments can be used. A standardized assessment can be a high-stakes assessment, for example, but so can other forms of assessment that are not standardized tests. A portfolio of student work can be a used as both a "formative" and "summative" form of assessment. Teacher-created assessments, which may also be created by teams of teachers, are commonly used in a single course or grade level in a school, and these assessments are almost never "high-stakes." Screening assessments may be produced by universities that have conducted research on a specific area of child development, such as the skills and attributes that a student should have when entering kindergarten to increase the likelihood that he or she will be successful, or the pattern of behaviors, strengths, and challenges that suggest a child has a particular learning disability. In short, assessments are usually created for highly specialized purposes.
Reform
While educational assessments and tests have been around since the days of the one-room schoolhouse, they have increasingly assumed a central role in efforts to improve the effectiveness of public schools and teaching. Standardized-test scores, for example, are arguably the dominant measure of educational achievement in the United States, and they are also the most commonly reported indicator of school, teacher, and school-system performance.

As schools become increasingly equipped with computers, tablets, and wireless internet access, a growing proportion of the assessments now administered in schools are either computer-based or online assessments-though paper-based tests and assessments are still common and widely used in schools. New technologies and software applications are also changing the nature and use of assessments in innumerable ways, given that digital-assessment systems typically offer an array of features that traditional paper-based tests and assignments cannot. For example, online-assessment systems may allow students to log in and take assessments during out-of-class time or they may make performance results available to students and teachers immediately after an assessment has been completed (historically, it might have taken hours, days, or weeks for teachers to review, score, and grade all assessments for a class). In addition, digital and online assessments typically include features, or "analytics," that give educators more detailed information about student performance. For example, teachers may be able to see how long it took students to answer particular questions or how many times a student failed to answer a question correctly before getting the right answer. Many advocates of digital and online assessments tend to argue that such systems, if used properly, could help teachers " personalize" instruction-because many digital and online systems can provide far more detailed information about the academic performance of students, educators can use this information to modify educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches, and academic-support strategies in ways that address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students. In addition, many large-scale standardized tests are now administered online, though states typically allow students to take paper-based tests if computers are unavailable, if students prefer the paper-based option, or if students don't have the technological skills and literacy required to perform well on an online assessment.

Given that assessments come in so many forms and serve so many diverse functions, a thorough discussion of the purpose and use of assessments could fill a lengthy book. The following descriptions, however, provide a brief, illustrative overview of a few of the major ways in which assessments-especially assessment results-are used in an attempt to improve schools and teaching:

System and school accountability: Assessments, particularly standardized tests, have played an increasingly central role in efforts to hold schools, districts, and state public-school systems "accountable" for improving the academic achievement of students. The most widely discussed and far-reaching example, the 2001 federal law commonly known as the No Child Left Behind Act, strengthened federal expectations from the 1990s and required each state develop learning standards to govern what teachers should teach and students should learn. Under No Child Left Behind, standards are required in every grade level and content area from kindergarten through high school. The law also requires that students be tested annually in grades 3-8 and at least once in grades 10-12 in reading and mathematics. Since the law's passage, standardized tests have been developed and implemented to measure how well students were meeting the standards, and scores have been reported publicly by state departments of education. The law also required that test results be tracked and reported separately for different "subgroups" of students, such as minority students, students from low-income households, students with special needs, and students with limited proficiency in English. By publicly reporting the test scores achieved by different schools and student groups, and by tying those scores to penalties and funding, the law has aimed to close achievement gaps and improve schools that were deemed to be underperforming. While the No Child Left Behind Act is one of the most controversial and contentious educational policies in recent history, and the technicalities of the legislation are highly complex, it is one example of how assessment results are being used as an accountability measure.

Teacher evaluation and compensation: In recent years, a growing number of elected officials, policy makers, and education reformers have argued that the best way to improve educational results is to ensure that students have effective teachers, and that one way to ensure effective teaching is to evaluate and compensate educators, at least in part, based on the test scores their students achieve. By basing a teacher's income and job security on assessment results, the reasoning goes, administrators can identify and reward high-performing teachers or take steps to either help low-performing teachers improve or remove them from schools. Growing political pressure, coupled with the promise of federal grants, prompted many states to begin using student test results in teacher evaluations. This controversial and highly contentious reform strategy generally requires fairly complicated statistical techniques-known as or growth measures-to determine how much of a positive or negative effect individual teachers have on the academic achievement of their students, based primarily on student assessment results.

Instructional improvement: Assessment results are often used as a mechanism for improving instructional quality and student achievement. Because assessments are designed to measure the acquisition of specific knowledge or skills, the design of an assessment can determine or influence what gets taught in the classroom ("teaching to the test" is a common, and often derogatory, phrase used to describe this general phenomenon). Formative assessments, for example, give teachers in-process feedback on student learning, which can help them make instructional adjustments during the teaching process, instead of having to wait until the end of a unit or course to find out how well students are learning the material. Other forms of assessment, such as standards-based assessments or common assessments, encourage educators to teach similar material and evaluate student performance in more consistent, reliable, or comparable ways.

Learning-needs identification: Educators use a wide range of assessments and assessment methods to identify specific student learning needs, diagnose learning disabilities (such as autism, dyslexia, or nonverbal learning disabilities), evaluate language ability, or determine eligibility for specialized educational services. In recent years, the early identification of specialized learning needs and disabilities, and the proactive provision of educational support services to students, has been a major focus of numerous educational reform strategies. For a related discussion, see academic support.

Debate
In education, there is widespread agreement that assessment is an integral part of any effective educational system or program. Educators, parents, elected officials, policy makers, employers, and the public all want to know whether students are learning successfully and progressing academically in school. The debates-many of which are a complex, wide ranging, and frequently contentious-typically center on how assessments are used, including how frequently they are being administered and whether assessments are beneficial or harmful to students and the teaching process. While a comprehensive discussion of these debates is beyond the scope of this resource, the following is a representative selection of a few major issues being debated:

Is high-stakes testing, as an accountability measure, the best way to improve schools, teaching quality, and student achievement? Or do the potential consequences-such as teachers focusing mainly on test preparation and a narrow range of knowledge at the expense of other important skills, or increased incentives to cheat and manipulate test results-undermine the benefits of using test scores as a way to hold schools and educators more accountable and improve educational results?

Are standardized assessments truly objective measures of academic achievement? Or do they reflect intrinsic biases-in their design or content-that favor some students over others, such wealthier white students from more-educated households over minority and low-income students from less-educated households? For more detailed discussions, see and .

Are "one-size-fits-all" standardized tests a fair way to evaluate the learning achievement of all students, given that some students may be better test-takers than others? Or should students be given a variety of assessment options and multiple opportunities to demonstrate what they have learned?

Will more challenging and assessments lead to higher educational achievement for all students? Or will they end up penalizing certain students who come from disadvantaged backgrounds? And, conversely, will less-advantaged students be at an even greater disadvantage if they are not held to the same high educational standards as other students (because lowering educational standards for certain students, such as students of color, will only further disadvantage them and perpetuate the same cycle of low expectations that historically contributed to racial and socioeconomic achievement gaps)?

Do the costs-in money, time, and human resources-outweigh the benefits of widespread, large-scale testing? Would the funding and resources invested in testing and accountability be better spent on higher-quality educational materials, more training and support for teachers, and other resources that might improve schools and teaching more effectively? And is the pervasive use of tests providing valuable information that educators can use to improve instructional quality and student learning? Or are the tests actually taking up time that might be better spent on teaching students more knowledge and skills?

Are technological learning applications, including digital and online assessments, improving learning experiences for students, teaching them technological skills and literacy, or generally making learning experiences more interesting and engaging? Or are digital learning applications adding to the cost of education, introducing unwanted distractions in schools, or undermining the value of teachers and the teaching process?

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In education, the term assessment refers to the wide variety of methods or tools that educators use to evaluate, measure, and document the academic readiness, learning progress, skill acquisition, or educational needs of students. While assessments are often equated with traditional tests-especially the standardized tests developed by testing companies and administered to large populations of students-educators use a ...

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Scaffolding in ELT
Scaffolding means providing temporary support for an inexperienced learner in order to help them to complete a task or acquire a skill, and then gradually withdrawing that support.

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Where are we going? What is going to change in education? Thanks to PBL we can develop activities and tasks that are focussed on the learners and engagement is central in  developing  the students' approach to learning. What I particularly liked in the topics of this week's module was the idea that we need to get our students' interest  and develop a new mindset.
The key ideas have to do with mindfulness and support . The role of the teacher is central in developing the framework of tasks and activities which can enhance the students' learning and success.
In ELT  I have found some interesting ideas in this article on line
https://eal.britishcouncil.org/teachers/great-ideas-scaffolding-learning

http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/a-diagram-of-21st-century-pedagogy/

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MODULE 3.5. 

3.5 P2P - Building your PBL Learning Design

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MODULE 3.5. 

3.5 P2P - Building your PBL Learning Design

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This is my  LEARNING  DESIGN -  I have tried to implement it
https://v.gd/StUDNl

LINK TO THE HANDOUT AND TOOLS WHICH I WOULD USE WITH MY STUDENTS

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tMT7ysPwl5eLlJIv-qfCeQwTGAPmXqg6BTh_LJdj1e0/edit?usp=sharing

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MODULE 3.4. 

Developing Entrepreneurial Skills

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MODULE 3.4. 

Developing Entrepreneurial Skills

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A great webinar- I must admit that I learnt something new.
Here is my post- week 3- on my blog related to this week's activity and the previous ones:  so many new things and tools! Great working and learning online!! Food for thought

https://gettingdigitalizedinlifeandwork.blogspot.it/2016/06/pbl-my-reflections-while-doing.html

https://gettingdigitalizedinlifeandwork.blogspot.it/2016/06/pbl-week-2.html

https://gettingdigitalizedinlifeandwork.blogspot.it/2016/06/pbl-week-3.html
LINK TO THE WEBINAR
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV_lcM9vqfw

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Resilience, initative and ownership, are all part of an entrepreneurial mindset.  This implies that PBL can be a good way for working on the mindset that prepares us for life.

We need to be aware of what " skills" and attitude can help our learners face real-life work and the needs of the XXI century.

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View the interactive image by Kornélia Lohyňová

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How can teachers weaken students' confidence and independence?
I CAN SAY THAT THIS OFTEN HAPPENS, WE ARE PEOPLE WHO MAKE MISTAKES BUT AS ADULTS WE NEED TO CHANGE OUR WAY OF APPROACHING TEACHING. WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT OUR WORK AND LEARNERS .
TWO INTERESTING ARTICLES
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-e-slavin/love-and-evidence_b_9208326.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shanna-peeples/love-before-curriculum_b_7963050. utm_hp_ref=tw

These two articlEs from the HUFFINGTON POST explain what good teachers can do  to support learners: love them and get good interaction
If we forget what our learners want and why we have become educators we forget that we play an important role.
LOVING our students is a must.  If we want to destroy them we do not support them, we approach them in the wrong way and we become responsible for their failures.
Sometimes I have faced the situation in which I could not stand what was happening in class and I realize that I chose the wrong approach as I  made some of them feel disappointed and they stopped working.
HERE IS THE PADLET WITH THE OTHER VOICES
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/vd6w2oex8ltt

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MODULE  3.2. DEVELOPING THE STUDENT RESILIENCE

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MODULE  3.2. DEVELOPING THE STUDENT RESILIENCE

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Resilience refers to the capacity to return to good mental health after challenging and difficult situations. It is not one specific thing, but a combination of skills and attributes that help to solve problems, cope with challenges, adapt and bounce back when things don´t go as planned.
I have checked online and I have  learnt that I am a resilient person!
http://stress.about.com/qz/Quiz-How-Resilient-Are-You

IT IS IMPORTANT TO SUPPORT LEARNERS, STRUGGLING LEARNERS .IN PBL WE CAN BECOME SUCCESSFUL AFTER DISCUSSING, MAKING MISTAKES BECAUSE LEARNING REQUIRES STRATEGIES AND WORKING ON DIFFERENT APPROACHES AND FINDING DIFFERENT SOLUTIONS.

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3 tips to boost your confidence - TED-Ed

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In education, scaffolding refers to a variety of instructional techniques used to move students progressively toward stronger understanding and, ultimately, greater independence in the learning process. The term itself offers the relevant descriptive metaphor: teachers provide successive levels of temporary support that help students reach higher levels of comprehension and skill acquisition that they would not be able to achieve without assistance. Like physical scaffolding, the supportive strategies are incrementally removed when they are no longer needed, and the teacher gradually shifts more responsibility over the learning process to the student.
FROM:http://edglossary.org/scaffolding/
HERE IS THE DISCUSSION ONLINE ABOUT  SCAFFOLDING AND LEARNING

https://dotstorming.com/topic/5766e7396a9221a52dcca17f

I THINK THAT IT CAN HELP THE LEARNERS TO MAKE PROGRESS : STEP BY STEP THEY WILL BECOME INDEPENDENT LEARNERS.

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MODULE 3 DEVELOPING STUDENT-DRIVEN ACTIVITIES FOR PBL

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MODULE 3 DEVELOPING STUDENT-DRIVEN ACTIVITIES FOR PBL

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3.1.SCAFFOLDING FOR STUDENT OWNERSHIP AND INDEPENDENCE

SCAFFOLDING IS THE BEST WAY FOR GETTING THE STUDENTS WORK AND LEARN IN A NEW WAY

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Facilitating Learning in a Student-Driven Environment (Keys to PBL Series Part 4)

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MODULE 3   IT'S NOT THAT I'M SO SMART,IT'S JUST THAT I STAY WITH PROBLEMS LONGER

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MODULE 3   IT'S NOT THAT I'M SO SMART,IT'S JUST THAT I STAY WITH PROBLEMS LONGER

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This is the beginning of the module and it is a great quote by  ALBERT EINSTEIN.
I like the way PBL has been presented so far as in real life we are asked to face a problem, find a solution  and try to work on the best ways : "take ownership of tasks, initiative at solving problems, and most importantly to stick with these tasks and problems".

I have posted on the shared padlet my thoughts-  link to the padlet  which  has presented as  " RESILIENCE - STAYING WITH PROBLEMS "
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/va3irzikz1uh
I have come across many difficulties in my life, from the beginning I felt that I needed to be positive and I should never give up. This has helped me
My great desire has always been working on projects in languages. I began working on English language projects over ten years ago. Nobody wanted to start the project about English Language Certifications, there were about 7 teachers of English but the school had not been supported.
At that time I had a temporary job in the school where I was teaching but in spite of the problems I was able to start the activities, to organize the modules and work with other teachers and my students were successful in the exams. I must confess that I am proud of this experience which continued for years and which I did in the other school where I moved some years ago.
Now I cannot work on such projects anymore as there  is not enough moneny in the school where I am teaching now.
Despite such negative opportunities , I cannot work on projects anymore, I have now embarked on line professional development and so far I have been successfull as a learner and I am using what I have learnt to implement my  teaching.  I have just received my certificate for attending an online MOOC about  writing ebooks!!
NEVER GIVE UP!!!
THIS IS THE MOTTO FOR MY STUDENTS TOO!!

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MODULE 2-   WHICH SKILLS DO WE NEED IN CREATING PROJECTS?

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MODULE 2-   WHICH SKILLS DO WE NEED IN CREATING PROJECTS?

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Education needs a change, a great   CHANGE.  This infogram - LINK  https://infogr.am/the-6-cs-of-education-for-the-21st-century  is a presentation of what I feel should be taken into consideration when planning  in PBL:
THINK  CRITICALLY
COMMUNICATE CLEARLY
WORK COLLABORATIVELY
DEVELOP CREATIVITY
EMBRACE CULTURE
UTILIZE CONNECTIVITY
"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."

- William Butler Yeats -
YES, WE NEED TO CREATE A NEW WORLD IN EDUCATION AND TEAM WORK IS PART OF IT.

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The 6 C's of Education for the 21st Century

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The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.

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MODULE 2.6  THINKING ABOUT COLLABORATION AND SKILLS NEEDED IN THE 2OTH CENTURY

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MODULE 2.6  THINKING ABOUT COLLABORATION AND SKILLS NEEDED IN THE 2OTH CENTURY

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While I was searching on the web I was able to find this presentation about a great project which was awarded a prize for Etwinning
" MIRROR, MIRROR". It was an interesting experience which hightlights how also Italian schools are undegoing changes which are  improving the level of engagement of schools and students.
Great task! It is worth sharing and it provides useful ideas for other projects! Etwinning must be a nice experience both for teachers and learners!!

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Video Istituto Tecnico Tecnologico Statale

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Premio europeo eTwinning 2016 all'Itts ‘Volta’ di Perugia [UMBRIA NEWS]

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Con il progetto 'Mirror, mirror' sulla percezione di sé e la rappresentazione del corpo attraverso i media, l'Istituto tecnico tecnologico statale 'Alessandro Volta' di Perugia ha vinto il premio europeo eTwinning 2016 nella categoria studenti 16-19 anni.

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HERE YOU CAN FIND THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE  LEARNING DESIGN WHICH I AM WORKING ON . THE LINK  ONLINE IS IN THE PDF DOCUMENT. THE FOCUS FOR THIS SESSION IS COLLABORATION
https://v.gd/StUDNl

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MODULE 2.6  Building
your PBL Learning Design

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MODULE 2.6  Building
your PBL Learning Design

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THE TOOL WE USE FOR  BUILDING  OUR PROJECT

http://learningdesigner.org/index.php

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An Introduction to the Learning Designer

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HERE IS MY PADLET ABOUT  SOME TOOLS AND IDEAS ABOUT  PBL

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HERE IS MY PADLET ABOUT  SOME TOOLS AND IDEAS ABOUT  PBL

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https://padlet.com/Tizianateacher/edyqaeg667ml

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We have shared our ideas about the best tools we can use and I was impressed by the knowledge of the teachers who provided a lot of tools:
here is the padlet  link  to the tools
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/hz3p2ellq4ya

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With PBL we are required to work in group and with teams and technology can really help us.
I was presented a new tool- new for me- TEAMUP . This can help us work with group and monitor them.
It's a great and modern tool. Here is the video about it.

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FCS | Module 1 | Tool for Teaching: TeamUp

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Which people from your community you or your students could engage with?
I think you need to have good links with the community and this is true for most of the schools where I have worked so far. Usually we invite speakers and work on projects  where some organizations are involved. However, I feel we should work in a better way.
PBL can work better if teachers and students are not afraid of the  outside world. The real world is what we will have to come to terms with when we leave school.
Here is the padlet with our  reflections:
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/fd1z0h6n4e15

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MODULE 2.4 INVOLVING  PEOPLE FROM THE COMMUNITY

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MODULE 2.4 INVOLVING  PEOPLE FROM THE COMMUNITY

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http://bie.org/blog/get_your_community_on_board_with_pbl

http://bie.org/blog/going_public_the_power_of_local_community_partners
This video can help us understand what PBL means..... schools belong to the community and we need to work on links with institutions and experts.

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Community Partners: Making Student Learning Relevant

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I have never taken part in e-Twinning but  I might try as I wish my students could interact with other students.  The problem  I have now is that I might move to another school and I have worked in different schools for years..............but the Project of E-Twinning can be a great opportunity to learn about other culture and get students more interested and engaged while working and using modern technology.
It is  a   must..............
A useful website has been created online : Teachers are supported to work and learn more about the best practices and how to work in the projects
https://stm.etwinning.net/en/pub/index.htm

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eTwinning: Transforming Teaching and Learning

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MODULE 2.4.  E-TWINNING AND THE IMPACT ON LEARNERS

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MODULE 2.4.  E-TWINNING AND THE IMPACT ON LEARNERS

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An interesting video shared about the way E-Twinning can impact all learners

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MODULE 2.4  Finding
collaboration partners outside the classroom- Establishing the link to the " Real-world"

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MODULE 2.4  Finding
collaboration partners outside the classroom- Establishing the link to the " Real-world"

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PBL can be more engaging if we think about  ways of working and collaborating online and sharing ideas with other students from other countries.
E-Twinning can help us work better :
https://www.etwinning.net/en/pub/index.htm
E-Twinning can help us get more students involved.
PBL and sharing a learning experience with other learners can be the key to develop a better learning environment.
THE LIFE CYCLE OF AN E-TWINNING PROJECT

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What kind of teacher am I?  For sure I am a teacher who is engaged in finding ways and new ways for my learners.... but as  regards the self-check suggested I am aware that I need to develop my skills and to provide more tasks where students share responsabilities , make decisions and produce interdependence work. I checked the rubric and I was really disappointed by the results but I must say that I am positive about the ways I can improve my way of working.
LINK TO THE PDF : http://fcl.eun.org/documents/10180/14691/5.3x+-+21cld+learning+activity+rubrics+2012.pdf/e240da11-07c2-4633-a86e-06c12f00d8ad?version=1.0

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MODULE 2.1.-2.2.  WHAT IS COLLABORATION?

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MODULE 2.1.-2.2.  WHAT IS COLLABORATION?

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A  key goal of PBL is not the project but rather the process of building the project. Learning happens while working on the project. And one of the key things students should be learning as part of this process is effective collaboration .
We are working together and sharing a nice experience online , the padlet we have created contains the information about the tools we have used and which we use in our  projects:
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/iegmgpb2pgy0
We have also watched this interesting video about the way we can teach and the importance of collaboration.
IT PROVIDED ME WITH SOME INTERESTING FOOD FOR THOUGHTS!

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FCS | Module 3 | Collaboration | Deirdre Butler, National University of Ireland

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DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE  COLLABORATION FOR PBL

COMING TOGETHER IS A BEGINNING,
KEEPING TOGETHER IS PROGRESS,
WORKING TOGETHER IS SUCCESS
HENRY FORD
OBJECTIVE OF THE MODULE:
1.       Understand how different types of collaboration can be used in the context of PBL

2.       Develop a series of strategies and activities to promote effective collaboration between students

3.       Develop a series of strategies and activities to promote effective collaboration with actors outside of the classroom

I am aware that collaboration is a key skill for us as teachers and for our students who will be required to work together and in team in their future life ...................but  it can be hard. It is up to the educator to get our students engaged and develop skills that help work together. PBL
can provide opportunities for learning together and creating nice outputs.

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http://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning
http://www.studentguide.org/the-complete-guide-to-project-based-learning/
http://bie.org/
http://ldt.stanford.edu/~jeepark/jeepark+portfolio/PBL/example2.htm
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/web/pbl/examples.htm
http://www.teachthought.com/learning/project-based-learning/a-better-list-of-ideas-for-project-based-learning/
http://snr.unl.edu/powell/teaching/pbl/pbl_web/index.htm
Managing PBL http://bie.org/images/uploads/general/f6d0b4a5d9e37c0e0317acb7942d27b0.pdf
https://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/2013/09/15/the-pbl-super-highway-over-45-links-to-great-project-based-learning/
http://www.learningreviews.com/Project-Based-Learning-Lesson-Plans.html

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EducationWorld is pleased to present this article contributed by Aimee Hosler, who specializes in education-related topics for a number of websites, including TeacherPortal.com. She holds a B.S. in Journalism from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

Traditional rote learning is not working-at least not for all students. So is there a better way to engage kids? To encourage critical thinking, communication and socialization, all while reinforcing key lessons and concepts? Chances are no single model will work for every student or classroom, but some come pretty close. Problem-based learning is one of them.

What is problem-based learning?

In this type of instruction, students work together to solve real-world problems in their schools and communities. Successful problem-solving often requires students to draw on lessons from several disciplines and apply them in a very practical way. The promise of seeing a very real impact becomes the motivation for learning.

These real-world projects develop problem-solving, research and social skills, but that is just the beginning. Studies suggest these activities engage learners, enhance retention and help establish a model for lifelong learning. They also teach students valuable lessons in cooperation and communication that they can carry with them into the workforce.

Best practices for problem-based learning

Begin with a focus on very real, very local problems in the neighborhood or the school community. This way, students will see the fruits of their labor and develop a sense of accomplishment. You may take a walk through your school grounds or the surrounding neighborhood to identify suitable problems-say, a flower bed that is not living up to its potential or an ongoing litter problem. Even better, ask students to identify problems.

Either way, set a reasonable scope for the activity by considering students' age and prior experience with problem-based learning. Once you have selected a problem, gather your students to discuss project goals, deadlines and materials, and to brainstorm some action steps for the project. Make sure your assignment has no one right answer. Let your students drive the discussion and do the real, "messy" work-your job is to offer gentle direction and answer questions.

In addition, consider how students will present their solution to the problem. A final product could be anything from a persuasive letter or series of graphs to a multimedia presentation. Be careful, however, not to over-emphasize the "pizzaz" of the presentation, at the expense of the problem-solving portion of the project.

Ideas for problem-based learning opportunities

If no project ideas immediately occur to you and your students, try collaborating with other educators in your school building or community to share insights. You may also join online communities dedicated to problem-based learning. Another good source of inspiration is local business leaders-especially those who might be willing to serve as a resource for students.

Here are a few questions that can help jump-start brainstorming:

How can we limit food waste in the school cafeteria?

How might we better control the area deer population?

How could we improve access to healthy food in our community?

How could we track and protect local plant or animal species?

How could we improve school attendance?

How might we limit cold and flu transmission among students?

Is there a better way to manage school traffic during pick-up and drop-off times?

Potential barriers (and how to get around them)

It is inevitable that students will sometimes run into problems when trying to complete projects. Perhaps one of the most common barriers is a lack of community support. Sometimes students may need to contact local businesses or experts for support, but not all of them will be willing to contribute-or, at times, even take young people seriously. Another common barrier is a lack of resources, especially when problems require certain materials or off-site excursions. View these obstacles as opportunities for students to develop their communication skills and problem-solving savvy. Help them learn how to work within time and budget constraints. These skills-and others they are sure to develop-will serve them well as adults.

Related resources

Education World®
Copyright © 2013 Education World

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Problem-Based Learning: Tips and Project Ideas

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EducationWorld is pleased to present this article contributed by Aimee Hosler, who specializes in education-related topics for a number of websites, including TeacherPortal.com . She holds a B.S. in Journalism from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Traditional rote learning is not working-at least not for all students.

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MODULE 1.6.

Your PBL Design: Formulating your
driving question as
part of this course you will be building a Learning Design that will allow you to experiment
with a PBL approach in your classroom . The goal is that by the end of the course you have a concrete plan
on how to go about experimenting with PBL next school year. The Design will be built step-by-step
throughout the course and in each module you will be adding a bit to your
Design as well as submitting it for peer review. You will use
the feedback you receive from your peers to further improve your Design so that
in the final module you can submit a rigorous and comprehensive Learning Design
for PBL which will also peer reviewed. 

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MODULE 1.6.

Your PBL Design: Formulating your
driving question as
part of this course you will be building a Learning Design that will allow you to experiment
with a PBL approach in your classroom . The goal is that by the end of the course you have a concrete plan
on how to go about experimenting with PBL next school year. The Design will be built step-by-step
throughout the course and in each module you will be adding a bit to your
Design as well as submitting it for peer review. You will use
the feedback you receive from your peers to further improve your Design so that
in the final module you can submit a rigorous and comprehensive Learning Design
for PBL which will also peer reviewed. 

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HERE IS THE LINK TO MY  DRIVING  QUESTION

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-L_ElFuRhv9RQ1hL797v6mrquDv-zfJR71oK-qaI1S4/edit?usp=sharing

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When choosing to work on PBL  you need to ask the  Driving Question:
The question should be open-ended, engage and inspire students by creating curiosity, and be aligned to the learning goals you would like to achieve.
This implies that the teacher cannot provide one answer and students will have to provide content  for the question in their activities.
WHAT  DRIVING  QUESTIONS ARE NOT
Good driving questions according to Mergendoller are non-Googleable questions.

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Module 1.4 What  I think about  PBL and its keys  

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Module 1.4 What  I think about  PBL and its keys  

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There are many interesting points  that need to be considered if we decide to try some activities that present this approach to learning:
1)  we teach in a school - I teach in Italy-which still has roots in the past and teachers need to struggle to find a way to work in the old school while living in the 21st century
2) technology can be missing  or  old but I am aware that  PBL is not only using  web 2.0 tools
3) I like the idea of collaboration but for assessment there might be some problems  and sharing a good rubric for the different steps of the project should be the beginning of a different way for evaluating our students
4) we have not changed the way we evaluate school leavers and testing is still the way we assess our  students' performances
5) we need to clarify families that PBL is also teaching and learning while some compare what students have learnt with other classes and usually they think that the more you study the more you learn - for some learning is memorizing lots of pages by heart
6) teachers need to be trained and need to work in team as often PBL is a cross curricula  project

But I think that  PBL can be a really good experience as it can create engaging activities where students are " protagonists" in the Learning process.
Image  By Hoodr - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15512644

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FIVE    KEYS
1) Real world connection
2) Core to Learning
3) Structured Collaboration
4) Student driven
5) Multifaceted assessment

Shared ideas by the Teachers in the course
https://padlet.com/teacher_academy/6tvhlgvbm9ir

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5 Keys to Rigorous Project-Based Learning

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Module 1.3  Reflections on  our current teaching practice

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Module 1.3  Reflections on  our current teaching practice

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Reflections on our current teaching practice

Let's think about how PBL links to our current teaching approaches. Write a short Learning Diary entry reflecting on your own teaching strategies, classroom setup, students' needs, etc.

Some questions to consider for your diary entry (you do not need to answer all of these): What teaching strategy do you use most commonly? What do YOU do most of the time in the classroom? What do the students do most of the time? Do you feel your current approach could be easily complemented with a PBL approach? Do you sometimes have the problem that students don't remember what they "learned" the day before? How do you address this? Do you already use some of the PBL approaches mentioned in the video? What works, doesn't work? Why? How do you find out about your student needs and how do you incorporate this knowledge in your teaching? Finish your reflection by identifying a class and a subject topic that you teach which you can use to experiment with PBL.

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This is the reply to the first questions: what I think I could do
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZQ6hPNQAcVC8kMUYZpKvYshlP3aAaCA5i9lQLy7rIiQ/edit?usp=sharing

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1^ We can help students  prepare solve  real-world problems
2^ Students use multiple learning techniques
3^ Students  work in team and as a group and carry out a task together
4^ Communication skills  are enhanced
5^ Students are introduced to specialization and delegation

See this interesting document online :
http://www.methodschools.org/blog/the-benefits-of-project-based-learning

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Module 1-  PBL and  21st Century Skills  " Why use it

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Module 1-  PBL and  21st Century Skills  " Why use it

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WHAT I THINK
It is a new way of working, a new approach but  we also need good and trained teachers and some labs or technology that can help us.
Some years ago I did my first  MOOC about 21st Century Skills with Coursera : what I learnt made me realize that learning can happen in a new world. 21st CENTURY SKILLS are the " tools" we need to master in order to learn, to study and to work now.
LINKS
http://www.oecd.org/general/thecasefor21st-centurylearning.htm
When I did my second MOOC with Coursera I kept my diary online and I must confess that I am proud of having learnt and shared ideas with educators from all over the world  :
https://sites.google.com/site/thenewworldoflearning/home/presentation/moocs-and-on-line-learning-1

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Propositions Project: 21st Century Skills

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Module 1 - More information about  PBL  " what is  PBL"

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Module 1 - More information about  PBL  " what is  PBL"

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Getting students more engaged
Learning by doing
Being more creative
Being  successful..................................

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An Introduction to Project-Based Learning

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Module 1- GETTING INTO   PBL      " what is PBL

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Module 1- GETTING INTO   PBL      " what is PBL

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The first video to introduce PBL and a useful presentation to anyone who would like to try it. I wish I   could have worked on PBL when I was at secondary school!

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TELL ME AND I FORGET,TEACH ME AND I REMEMBER,
INVOLVE ME AND I LEARN
Benjamin Franklin
These great words were just the introduction to the MOOC.  They are meaningful to me as  more and more  I can see how many students I teach do not work  hard and do not feel engaged. I do need to provide them with some interesting ideas and  get them into the process of learning while having fun!

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When I could not work on projects in my schools some years ago , I was good at teaching   B1 and B2 Cambridge exams but there was no money to finance my courses,  I started learning online. It was the best investment I have ever made: I  have learnt a lot since then I have described what I have learnt. Now I am ready to share what  I have learnt and I write about new ideas in my websites and blogs: online learning is now part of my  CPD and I try to provide help to my students when they have to work from home.
Here are my blogs:
http://educationalandissue.blogspot.it/
http://gettingdigitalizedinlifeandwork.blogspot.it/
https://sites.google.com/site/thenewworldoflearning/
These are my websites for the students:
https://sites.google.com/site/englishclassroomprofangiolini/
https://sites.google.com/site/englishteachereinaudi/
https://sites.google.com/site/tizianainglese2013/
You can find me on the internet too:
https://twitter.com/virginiawoolf64
https://it.linkedin.com/in/tiziana-angiolini-72b34077

And now  let's start   LEARNING !

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I am an Italian teacher of English and German, working in secondary schools in my country.  I have been working for many years and I think that teaching requires good teachers who are ready to learn more and believe in life-long learning.  Sometimes I feel that I should be a better teacher and that today's schools can be hard for us as education is undergoing a lot of changes.

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What do we mean by  Project Based Learning?  I have just finished an interesting MOOC run by https://www.canvas.net/ and while we were focussing on the importance of motivating our learners when teaching them English the tutors designed a short unit dealing with PBL. It is an interesting way for working with learners while they are more engaged and interested in carrying out tasks which  require a good teacher's management.
Now I have found this MOOC which is specifically designed for teachers and I am going to do it. I wish to thank all the tutors who are going to help us enter this new reality,  I must confess that I am willing to take advantage of the experience online and I will try to  use PBL in my classes next year.
Before starting it I had already read these interesting documents about  projects as  PBL is often presented in webinars and in specialized magazines :
https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/05-43-4-c.pdf    ( Maximizing the benefits of project work in foreign language classrooms. English Teaching Forum, 43(4), 10-21)
https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/52_1_5_brenner.pdf   ( Digital stories: A 21st-century communication tool for the English language classroom. English Teaching Forum, 52(1), 22-29 )
https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/08-46-2-b.pdf  (Student-produced video: Two approaches. English Teaching Forum, 46(2).)
http://www.edutopia.org/discussion/getting-started-literature-and-project-based-learning

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Project Based Learning by digitalsandbox1

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