To those who think that PBL could be not related enough to the “program” and its precious knowledges, I'd say that the "starting point" of PBL method, as well as any other related to constructivistic approach, is in "learning to learn" joint to "learning by doing". In other words: knowledges can be the "sugar", but method is what bakes the "cake" !

My Second point

About assessment and integration of PBL and exams-syllabus, I would like to share with you that in my school we used to ask the students an interdisciplinary report (with a guideline) on the project work related to "Alternanza Scuola Lavoro" and we evaluated it using subject-based rubrics or checklist, even in the last class preparing to National final Exam.

“Great expectations”

I think the biggest challenge we have to face is accepting that the “product” of teaching-learning process could be something very new and different, far from what we “performed” as students. In other words, switching to PBL means building up a learning process that could have un-expected results, if related to the rigid program that reigns in old-fashioned schools, but “great expectations” if related to a well-structured project and to the idea of future self-thinking citizens we want to educate.

Students usually are enaged in quest activity, esercitations, “art and crafts” and/or multimedial activity related to the topic.

In the past years I used to work with older students, with whom I experimented debate and group investigation. Now I have the problem that many students, who have “special educational needs”, don't remember informations and base-knowledges of my subjects: Italian and History.

I'd like to focus on the last one in particular. I find that PBL is a good strategy I could incorporate in my History teaching.

I got inspiration from the approaches shown in the video and also from the “flipped taxonomy” coming out from PBL method: 

“asking students to create an authentic product with a strong Driving Question. Doing this can help the teacher facilitate deeper learning of the content and skills we find at the lower level as students identify and pursue what they need to know, remember, and understand to create and meet the challenge of the project” (from: https://www.teachthought.com/project-based-learning/using-project-based-learning-flip-blooms-taxonomy-deeper-learning/).

At this point, I would like to try to plan a project of the historical domain (study of ancient civilizations) in my 1^st class (aged 14) of a vocational school, which is an “inclusive class”, asking students to produce a video titled "The Long History of a Schoolboy" to be shown to younger pupils visiting during the school-orientation period in January.

So, the first “strong Driving Question” should be

1- “Do you think Are you treated better or worse than ancient students?”

Then it will run a waterfall of specific questions about historical informations, such as:

“How was the school working in ancient time and what was the role of... (punishments, humor, art, handcrafts, sport?)”

(Pippilotta Delicatessa Windowshade Mackrelmind Ephraim’s Daughter Longstocking)