The Student-Centered Shift: Empowered International Schools and Classrooms Through Project-Based Learning

When a girl from Cuba arrived in Lua's PBL class, she had zero English.  But within two months, because of a hands-on project, she was able to deliver full presentations in her second language. In this episode, I sit down with Lua Yaganagi and her adorable students, in a mixed-age primary PBL classroom in Rizhao, China to hear how projects ranging from building a class garden, to designing Olympic Games helped students: Acquire reading, writing and listening ESL skills.  Grow in confidence.  Co-teach their younger peers. Discover their personal passions.  Improve their English speaking vocabulary. For a full write up of Lua's Class Garden Project: https://bit.ly/3KGtgan Get the free PBL Design Kit: https://projectbasedlearning.teachable.com/p/pblstarterkit 

How can one project culminate in a Wurundjeri Elder officially welcoming students and teachers onto the stolen land on which their school sits? How can one project transform previously disengaged teenagers, into empathetic contributors towards reconciliation between First Nations People and settler Australians? That's the power of PBL when learners are given an authentic problem to tackle. In this episode, Christopher Bush, Head of Student Voice and Leadership at University HIgh School, unpacks the First Nations Project and provides ideas for how we as learner-centered practitioners can:  Co-Create projects with students and experts in the community  Break down the walls between school and community and find authentic problems to design projects around Help foster learner agency and voice in managing their own projects under the same driving question Scaffold experiences to allow for DEEP learning Register for the 12 Shifts Webinar to unpack Learner-Centered PBL Environments: Here  Chris' Bio: Chris Bush is currently the Head of Student Voice and Leadership at the University High School in Parkville. Previously working as a Leading Teacher (Curriculum and Innovation) at Prahran High School, Chris designed and implemented an agentic and engaging project-based learning curriculum focussing on various topics including Indigenous Perspectives, Sustainability, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Prior to this work, Chris worked for the Safe Schools Coalition Australia, where he designed and implemented National curriculum resources to make schools safer for LGBTQIA+ students. Chris is passionate about co-designing engaging learning experiences with his learners and listening authentically to their desires and interests, allowing those to drive their inquiries.

What if you were given a blank canvas to design a new school from the ground up? How would students spend their day? What learning experiences would it include? What would the building look like? Would they even need a classroom? Most of us don't have the luxury to build from the ground up, but with micro-schools, edu- innovators like you are beginning to re-imagine the schooling experience. With their small, flexible structure, micro-schools are able to rapidly adapt and design more learner-centered experiences.  I sat down with micro-school founder Michael Ha, to learn about his brand new open age, experiential, project-based, personalized, biosphere and sustainability grounded 'Elements College.' Through our interview, you will learn how to: Come up with the design principals to accelerate our own learner-centered environments Build and scaffold self-management and self-directed skills in learners Embrace the 6 C's and make them come to life  Connect learners to the Metaverse Organize learning experiences that move beyond the four walls of our classsroom and into the biosphere Build a reflective culture that allows for rapid prototyping and iteration Learn More about Elements College: https://www.elementcollege.com.au/ Connect with Michael via LinkedIn (@michaelhaedu) and Twitter (@MichaelHaEDU). Join the Micro-School Design Challenge with innovators around the world: innovationhub.school/reschool-sprint Michael's Bio:  Michael believes that a bottom-up approach of rethinking education is the best approach to accelerate change, and is committed to share an open-sourced playbook on the development and ongoing operations of this learning ecosystem. Outside of Element College, Michael is the Executive Director of the Institute of Deeper Learning, supporting schools on the implementation of pedagogical practices across K-12 schools, foster staff professional growth, and facilitate the development of cultures of learning globally. Attesting to his commitment to professional learning, Michael is a Doctorate candidate (UNSW) in educational leadership. Outside of education, he is a founding member of Bank of Cancer Research, a social enterprise that aims to fund open-source cancer research.

What if we allowed students to design their own project-based experiences? Formulate their own questions, connect with relevant experts, and find authentic audiences. What global IMPACT might they have then? Fardeen Blaq, a 13 year old changemaker and global citizen, started managing his own projects at age 9. In this episode, I sit down with Fardeen to learn more about his award winning 'Trailblazers' and SDG focused 'Global Blueprint' Project, and how we as educators can: Provide the time and space for PBL. Mentor students in achieving their project goals. Help students discover their passions Build the capacity in students to grow as global citizens. Get out of the way and help students develop as socially, emotionally, and globally aware citizens on their own. Learn more about 'The Global Blueprint': https://www.facebook.com/TheGlobalBlueprint/  Learn more about Fardeen's Trailblazers: https://www.facebook.com/FardeenTrailblazersB  Free Student Process Guides for Passion Projects: https://transformschool.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Student-Guide.pdf   SDG Related Projects: https://transformschool.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/SDG-Development-Guide.pdf  Fardeen's Bio:  Fardeen Blaq is a 13 years old changemaker from Nairobi, Kenya He is the Youngest Diana Awards Recipient in Africa in 2020. In 2021 he was nominated for the Legacy Award. The highest Award in this program. Fardeen is also a Kids Rights Changemaker. In 2021 he was nominated and received recognition for being nominated for International Children’s Peace Prize. He is the HundrED Youth Ambassador for Kenya, and also the Country consultant for 3Dux|Design in Kenya. He is the Ambassador for his football team, FARDEEN TRAILBLAZERS which he started at the age of 9 together with my father and his production house. Fardeen set my team as an Education through Football program implementing the FIFA Grassroots in Kwale County of Kenya. This was launched in 2017. Fardeen received recognition for the work that he continues to do to meet Global Goal 4 Quality Education.

As the invasion of 🇺🇦 Ukraine intensifies, how might we use the same process to empower our students as global citizens, critical thinkers and problem-solvers? Yesterday, I had the great privilege of chatting with Robert Gold, the Model United Nations Coordinator at the International School of Kuala Lumpur on how to start the discussion in our classrooms. Through the interview we learn how to: Help students understand the complexities of the conflict Seamlessly weave together history, geography, and language topics found in our curriculum Help students differentiate between 'real' and 'fake' news  Organize our own Model United Nations conference with little to no experience Motivate students to give up entire weekends to the process of diplomacy Connect with Rob: rgold@iskl.edu.my MUN Free Resources: https://bit.ly/35ulpgz Additional Ideas for Discussion: https://transformschool.com/category/blog/mun/ 

These past 2 years have been some of the toughest we have ever faced as educators.  We've been asked to teach in new mediums. Had to work double shifts. Been required to work in unsafe conditions. And at the same time seen our salaries and pensions dwindle.  For these reasons, many of us our leaving the profession. How do we re-ignite and re-imagine our love for the classroom during this difficult time? I sat down with veteran educator and master storyteller Todd Shy, to chat about his new book 'Teaching Life: Life Lessons for the Aspiring and Inspiring Teacher,' and hear stories that help re-ignite the joy and wonder that only a life of teaching can bring. During our short interview, Todd helps us remember: ❤️  To be charmed by our students ❤️  That we are called to be both artist and engineer ❤️  To prepare students for life, not a test ❤️  The wonder of the Groundhog years Get Todd's Book : https://press.avenues.org/teaching-life/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/avenues-the-world-school/mycompany/ Prevent 'burnout' through job rotation: https://www.hourly.io/post/job-rotation-pros-and-cons-for-your-business Connect on Twitter: @Avenues_org/with_replies Facebook: @AvenuesTheWorldSchool Todd's Bio: Todd Shy has taught for more than twenty-five years in North Carolina, California, and New York. Currently, he is Head of the Upper Division at Avenues The World School in New York City. His essays and book reviews have appeared in the Raleigh News and Observer, the San Francisco Chronicle, Salmagundi, and the Harvard Divinity Bulletin. In 2008, he was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing. 

How do you build community partners for project-based experiences to make learning more 'real world,' and meaningful for students? There's the 'old school' way of doing things. 🥱  Plan a learning experience inside your classroom in a silo, or shared office, and then figure out how it fits with the community. Or there's the more effective, '21st century' way of doing things. BUILD the project together with students and community partners 🤝. That's how Julia Kao, PBL teacher, and community outreach curator at VIS OneWorld Lab School in Taiwan builds projects. In this short podcast episode, we learn from Julia how to: Develop community partnerships that last well beyond the project due date Help students co-create products with community partners that serve purpose in the real world Utilize community partners for feedback, critique and adjudicators for student work Seamlessly integrate your core curriculum and content to lead to DEEPER learning Website: https://vis.tp.edu.tw/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vis_betterworldlab/?hl=en  Program Overview Take the 12 Shifts for Learner-Centered Classrooms Scorecard: www.transformschool.com/12shiftsmastermind 

What do learner-centered classrooms look like? 15 years ago, as a rookie PBL teacher, I wouldn't be able to answer that question. But after leading and teaching in some of the most renowned PBL schools in the world, I can confidently answer that question. Learner-centered classrooms require 12 key shifts. Making these shifts will tranform a teacher-led classroom, into one that creates student self-managers, leaders, and 21st century socially, globally and emotionally aware citizens. With the help of my dear friend, mentor and co-founder of High Tech High Rob Riordan, we have outlined each of the 12 shifts, and the necessary steps to get there.  In this episode, I detail each shift and how you can make them in your classroom, school or own learning environment.  Take the 12 Shifts Scorecard: www.transformschool.com/12shiftsmastermind

Being an innovative and imaginative Project-Based teacher can be lonely. Sometimes we are the only ones doing this work in the corner classroom of a large school. What if there was a way to expand the audience and find collaborators for our project-based experiences? Might we feel less isolated? In this short episode, Kelly Pfeiffer, human network architect, dedicated PBL educator, author, blogger and presenter shares how she accomplished this through the 'Dark Sky' Project. She shares how she connected her project to NGOs, other schools, 60+ industry experts, and even the ministry of education. She also shares how we can: Build community collaborators by starting PBL with a real, authentic problem Leverage social media and other channels to find project mentors within minutes  Find your PBL 'tribe,' and build capacity for PBL across your entire school Build meaningful projects in the metaverse with your students as co-creators  Use PBL to transform formerly passive students into active, engaged problem-solvers and global citizens  Connect with Kelly: LinkedIn Twitter (@kelmade5) 'Dark Sky' Project Website (free resources): https://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/About-Us/Our-Programs/Dark-Sky/Dark-Sky-education Kelly's Bio: A human network architect, dedicated educator, author, blogger and presenter, Kelly is the point person for PBL Global in Australia and an innovator in distance education PBL. Kelly co-created the widely-adopted Dark Sky PBL unit, nominated for the Dark Sky Defender award through the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA). In 2019, she won the Australasian Association of Distance Education Schools (AADES) for Teaching Excellence. In addition, her Dubbo School of Distance Learning Futures Team received the New South Wales Department of Education Technology 4 Learning (T4L) award for Leader in Developing Digital Collaborative Communities.

What does a theater director and the coordinator of a wall-to-wall PBL program have in common? They are both experts in facilitating several projects at once. Whether that's script writing and set design in preparation for a major performance, or student-designed health apps and meal plans in response to the obesity crisis in their community. In this short interview, Kim Flintoff, coordinator of TIDES (Technology, Innovation, Design, Enterprise, Sustainability), a year 7-10 micro-PBL program, shares with us how to: Use a few simple frameworks to help generate and facilitate multiple student project ideas  Partner with and frame project-based experiences around REAL issues in the community Use a repeatable process to help students self-assess project work and become self-directed learners Build 'future ready skills' and still cover our curriculum Build momentum for learner-centered PBL across the whole school  Connect with Kim: LinkedIn (@kimflintoff), Twitter (@kimbowa), Facebook (@kimfutures)  Kim's Website: http://www.stem4innovation.org/ TIDES Program Overview Kim's Bio: Kim has traversed many roles in forty-odd years since he left school. Studying in a range of disciplines across the arts and sciences, and working in many areas including theatre, circus and media before settling into education where his combined experience seemed to find a home. Formerly an internationally recognised high school Drama teacher and teacher educator, then inaugural Learning Futures Advisor at Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia, in 2021 Kim returned to a role in school leadership (TIDES Coordinator) and his work continues to engage him in global advisory and consultation roles in all education sectors. As well as establishing and coordinating the Learning Futures Network, Innovative Schools Consortium and shared development of STEM4Innovation, Kim is also a founding member of the ShapingEDU community and continues as Lifelong Change Maker, advisory board member to Consortium of Schools Networking Driving K-12 Innovation initiative, FutureWe, NetEDU, OneHE and other projects around the world. Kim's ongoing research interest is considering the impact of educational collaborative networks on school innovation and transformation.