The course includes four modules;

1. Introduction & importance of project-based learning (PBL) and STE(a)M

2. Introduction and importance of 21st-century skills

3. Designing a PBL project

4. Implementing a PBL project

5. Additional module for editing and making videos by Magdalena Dygala.

It may look that PBL is a new approach to learning when it is infused with technology. When we have a look at Confucius and Aristotle's philosophy, it has foundation which was there centuries ago. Confucius and Aristotle were early proponents of learning by doing. Socrates modeled how to learn through questioning, inquiry, and critical thinking -- all strategies that remain very relevant in today's PBL classrooms.

All of this effort is to meet a need. According to a report by the website STEMconnector.org, by 2018, projections estimate the need for 8.65 million workers in STEM-related jobs. The manufacturing sector faces an alarmingly large shortage of employees with the necessary skills — nearly 600,000. The field of cloud computing alone will have created 1.7 million jobs between 2011 and 2015, according to the report. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that by 2018, the bulk of STEM careers will be:

STEM jobs do not all require higher education or even a college degree. Less than half of entry-level STEM jobs require a bachelor's degree or higher. However, a four-year degree is incredibly helpful with salary — the average advertised starting salary for entry-level STEM jobs with a bachelor's requirement was 26 percent higher than jobs in the non-STEM fields, according to the STEMconnect report. For every job posting for a bachelor's degree recipient in a non-STEM field, there were 2.5 entry-level job postings for a bachelor's degree recipient in a STEM field.

This is not a problem unique to the United States. In the United Kingdom, the Royal Academy of Engineering reports that the Brits will have to graduate 100,000 STEM majors every year until 2020 just to meet demand. According to the report, Germany has a shortage of 210,000 workers in the mathematics, computer science, natural science and technology disciplines.

What separates STEM from the traditional science and math education is the blended learning environment and showing students how the scientific method can be applied to everyday life. It teaches students computational thinking and focuses on the real world applications of problem solving.

Here is why?

STEM and PBL philosophies both focus on this specific facet of preparing students for life after school. In order for students to be ready to solve the complex challenges and problems that exist in our world, they have to have had the opportunity to practice doing so. This is true whether students pursue a career in a STEM field, the arts, or in the humanities. Requiring students to engage with rigorous problems that have not been contrived for the sake of arriving at one correct answer is key in building their capacity to think critically and problems solve out in the real world.

One of the hallmarks of STEM education is that students no longer study and practice science, math or engineering in isolation. Rather, teachers are now asked to engage students in thought-provoking work that requires them to utilize and make connections among their learning. In similar fashion, the goal of PBL in modeling real-world problems and challenges is to get students to begin to understand that issues in the real-world are rarely connected to one single subject. Students need to be proficient with academic content and skills across the curriculum, and both PBL and STEM focus allow students opportunities to develop this interdisciplinary view of their learning and of the word.

While the definition provided for PBL defines it more explicitly, one of the main goals of both a PBL and STEM approach to learning is that students leave schools prepared with the skills they need in the workplace; or, to quote Tsupros, Kohler and Hallinen, the skills needed to “compete in the new economy.” Being able to apply what you know to solve problems is important, and being able to collaborate, communicate, innovate and think critically are equally necessary to ensure long-term success. Both approaches hone in on helping students develop the 21st century and future-ready skills they need to live, work and interact successfully in today’s modern landscape.

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Based on the commonalities we can see here, it is in schools’ best interest not to treat these initiatives as separate entities, but to recognize that the changes in teaching and learning called for by each is the same. PBL provides a framework of instructional strategies and content practices which can be applied and used within STEM or any content area of choice. As teachers shift their classrooms and instructional practices toward a project-based approach, they will more naturally be able to utilize complex, interdisciplinary STEM projects as the focus of these experiences.