If you have followed my blog for any amount of time, you’ll know that I am a huge proponent of project based learning (or PBL for short). I have a PBL hub with articles and resources you can access. I conduct PBL workshops, keynotes, and coaching. As a classroom teacher, I embraced PBL and now, as a professor, I continue to use PBL within my work with pre-service teachers.
To my core, I believe in the power of project based learning to help students learn and retain the content at a deeper level while also helping them gain the skills they’ll need as they navigate a complicated and uncertain world.
But today I want to explore a different kind of question. I’d like to focus on when we shouldn’t have students do PBL. I actually think there are times when the standards don’t align well with PBL as a framework. In other words, I don’t believe we should be using PBL for every unit plan we design.
Sometimes PBL Isn’t the Best Idea
I’m meeting with a leadership team before doing a district-level PBL workshop with four middle schools.
“How do we get our middle school math teachers to embrace project-based learning?” A principal asks me.
“Have you asked them about it?” I ask him.
He nods. “They say that PBL doesn’t work in math. I disagree. I taught AP Stats for years. We did PBL on a regular basis. They mention the time crunch and the test. We had limited time and a high stakes AP test. But we still did it. And the kids aced the test, too. We had one of the highest success rates in the state.”
“What standards are they teaching?” I ask.
“I mean, it’s kind of all over the place. But I think the could be clustered together to do meaningful projects instead of just constant direct instruction, worksheets, and tests.”
I take a look at the curriculum map and I’m immediately empathetic toward both this principal and the middle grade math team.
The time crunch is real. You have this is a massive set of standards that students are supposed to master in a single year. Unlike high school statistics, these range from algebra to geometry to statistics. Some are very skill-based and procedural. Others are conceptual. Some of these require lots of explicit instruction and a strong set of prerequisite skills. Others allow for more discovery and open inquiry.
I’m struck by the fact that I would only do one or two PBL units if I were given this curriculum map. I could easily imagine a project based statistics, probability, and permutations. I could maybe envision a different blended project (with the clustering of standards that the principal described) based on proportional reasoning, volume, and surface area.
At the same time, many of these standards require a systematic approach with clear explicit instruction, where each skill builds on the next in complexity. In these moments, I wouldn’t embrace PBL. Instead, I would create meaningful, context-based word problems or even short design challenges. Then, only after they have built deeper background knowledge, I would incorporate more inquiry or discovery.
For me, this is a reminder that sometimes project-based learning isn’t the best instructional model. There are times when PBL might actually backfire completely. I learned this the hard way when I was an eighth grade teacher.
The Myth of “Always PBL”
Early on in my PBL journey, I attended some conferences and visited some high schools where they promoted an “Always PBL” approach. “We are a PBL school,” one teacher said. One speaker mentioned the notion that authentic learning means we learn through projects rather than simply doing a project afterward. Although I was skeptical of this approach and never completely bought into it, I found myself trying to do PBL as much as possible.
But then I had a conversation with a student.
“Hey Spencer, can I ask you something?” Miguel said as he walked into the classroom.
“Go on.”
“Okay, I’m not trying to be mean. I just want to know something. Why can’t we just read right now?”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I mean, I don’t mind doing research. I liked our Geek Out Blogs. I like writing, too. But, um, I just, I don’t know. I miss the silent reading we were doing.”
“Yeah, you replaced reading with work,” Liliana chimed in.
“Okay, but this is reading. I mean . . .”
“But we aren’t reading,” she pointed out. “We’re talking. We’re making things. We’re discussing. That’s fine. I just miss reading. I love the projects we do in science and social studies. And I know that these book reviews are necessary. I just wish I could be reading a book instead.”
“Thanks for your feedback. I’ll consider that,” I said. To be honest, I wasn’t actually that grateful for the feedback. I was actually kind of irritated. I had spent a long time planning this project.
As students streamed in, I began a short mini-lesson on video editing. It was a solid lesson . . . on video editing. And to an outside observer, it would have been a lesson with peak student engagement. However, when we finished, I had this lingering question. Was this actually a reading lesson? Were students actually engaged in the standards that were listed on my lesson plan? Yes, they were doing video previews of books they had read. But were they focused on video composition or the actual literary review standards.
At the end of the day, I made a key decision. This didn’t need to be a PBL unit. Instead, we would take 2-3 class periods and do a short mini-project. The videos might not be perfectly edited but that’s okay. We might not have the ultimate authentic audience but, again, that’s okay. We would make the videos and launch them to the library with QR codes so students could watch the videos.
Honestly, I felt guilty about putting academic standards above the “Gold Standard PBL” I had learned in training. But I now realize this was the right decision.
With that in mind, I'd like to share three times when PBL is actually not the best idea.
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Let's Work Together!
I would love to work with your school, district, or conference! You might be interested in keynotes or workshops on deeper learning, PBL, and empowering students.
I still have some availability in June and in September. I'd also love to do something more in-depth throughout the school year as well. Most workshops and keynotes include participant access to my self-paced courses so that participants have access to professional learning after the day's event.
Please reach out to me at john@spencereducation.com or fill out the form on my speaking page and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. I can send you a PD catalog with all the details.
