Future Ready Alliance offered training in Project-Based Learning
Members of our Future Ready Alliance who wanted a better understanding of Project-Based Learning (PBL) came together in late February for a targeted training session. The session also gave participants training in classroom use of Socratic Seminars and Design Thinking.
“It was the best professional development I’ve ever attended,” said Clairton City School District teacher Kristen Sirbaugh. “It really walked you through” steps needed to incorporate PBL into classroom teaching. The session also gave insights into how PBL can be used to help students practice soft skills, she said.
The session was one of several “target days” offered this year to districts and schools participating in the Alliance and to others interested in specific tools for helping prepare students for their futures. Earlier in the year, the Alliance offered a target day around portfolio development.
The team projects at the heart of PBL make it an instructional method teachers can use to help students practice soft skills while learning any subject. Among other things, portfolio development helps students set goals, reflect on their school experience and progress and assemble evidence to demonstrate mastery of important skills.
The Alliance brings together educators and other stakeholders to strengthen school and district resources for helping students answer three questions critical to future success—Who am I? Who do I want to be? and How do I get there?
School and district teams participating in the Alliance come together twice a year for general network sessions as well as for target days dedicated to specific topics.
