3rd Annual Project Foundry Un-conference

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SAVE THE DATE: JULY 26-28, 1011

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Announcing the 3rd Annual Project Foundry Un-conference

We are thrilled to be announcing our third annual Project Foundry Un-conference! This year hosted at Northwest Passage High School in Coon Rapids, MN July 26- 28, 2011.

Mark your calendars and plan on joining the estimated 100+ innovative educators gather for an event like no other conference you've attended before (unless of course you've attending one of the first two ;)

More details will be forthcoming within the next month, but here are some basics:

* Cost: $150/ individual, $300/ team (early bird special)

* Tentative Schedule:

- Tuesday July 26th_: New to Project Foundry Workshop

- Wednesday July 27th_: 1st day of Un-conference, keynote, PM entertainment

- Thursday July 28th_: 2nd day of Un-conference (close at 2pm CDT)

* Travel: Coon Rapids is a short 30 minute drive from the Minneapolis/St.

Paul airport (MSP). Hotel suggestions will be announced soon.

* Quotes from Former Attendees:

_"I've been to both PF conferences. Each time I've been inspired and

energized by the attendees and their devotion to relinquishing

responsibility for learning to their students. They embody the notion that

a teacher's role is to create learning experiences that provoke

reflection. Most of all it's a blast to be in the company of folks who

love what they are doing. The evening carousing is a plus!"_

_"_Being able to hear and see the veteran's forms and assessments was

extremely valuable and encouraging. The general un-atmosphere was

refreshing as it involved all in attendance in setting the agenda, leaving

no one out - unless of course they didn't contribute."

"I found the "show and tell" sessions very helpful - having models of

practice and hearing the rational behind the practice informed our next

steps in our program and how we can make PF a strong tool to support those

steps."

"Meeting fellow PBL colleagues was great and getting new ideas and making

network contacts will be very useful this coming school year."

_"Such a great opportunity to be amongst other educators who are really

revolutionizing education."_

Project Foundry Summer Conference

Join us in Janesville, WI July 21-22, 2009 for the first annual 'How to better leverage Project Foundry' conference. Network with innovative schools from Maine to California and everywhere in between. Excited to have Peter Pappas keynote the conference and just as excited that Suzie Boss (co-author of 'Reinventing PBL') will be attending.

http://www.projectfoundry.org/news/summerWorkshop2009.html

Project-based Learning management done right.

Malcom Gladwell on Education

Upcoming PBL Institutes

Now is the time many folks are starting to think about their summer professional development plans.  Since not everyone in the trenches always has the time to research some of the better project-based learning summer institutes, I'd thought I'd inventory them here.

April 14 -16, 2009
"Big Picture Learning’s Schools, Innovation, and Influence Conference"
http://www.bigpicture.org/2008/10/bp-schools-innovation-influence-conf/

June 15 - 17, 2009
Project-based Learning Dissemination Workshop

http://www.rhinelander.k12.wi.us/ncss/

July 21- 22, 2009 
'How to Better Leverage' Project Foundry Conference

http://www.projectfoundry.org/news/summerWorkshop2009.html

July 27 - 30, 2009

EdVisions Summer Institute

http://www.edvisions.com

August 3 - 6, 2009

Big Picture Big Bang 

http://www.bigpicture.org/2008/10/big-bang-viii/

All Summer Long

BIE Project Based Learning Academy  
http://www.bie.org

Of course, I would tell you once you have the theory and confidence in the pedagogy, remember to figure out project management, how you'll manage individual learning plans and if standards-based reporting will suffice for your summative transcript. Despite living in a standards-based world, the traditional institutions still don't get it unless you provide a course-based conduit.

Buck Institute for Education PBL Handbook

Anyone who wants to knows anything about the actual 'how to' of project-based learning needs to have the Buck Institute for Education PBL Handbook (http://www.bie.org).

I appreciate the handbook's practical framing and real examples.  In addition, the handbook articulates the requirement that doing PBL demands a paradigm shift, not just an adjustment to a classroom. As scary as this may sound, the handbook provides guidance and concrete ideas on how to frame, scaffold and model such a change.

Too often I see people with the best intentions try to create better learning environments by keeping the same structure and people. It's not only education, but any organization systemically making a fundamental change requires a certain level of autonomy  and distance from the existing system. Otherwise, the new system will have to conform to the old incrementally undermining the hopes and discernment of the new system. Ultimately, this is how many project-based schools are undermined... "We want something different, but wait it needs to look the same."

The Buck Institute of Education Handbook is one of those transformational resources that can take the theory and make it real.

 

Eye Opening Videos

The rationale for utilizing project-based learning as the primary means of instruction is a movement that's rooted in much more than simply doing something different for sake of doing things differently.

The information we know as humans doubles every few years.  The economy more and more values people who ask the how and why questions over the what and where questions. Tools like Project Foundry make tracking individualized learning plans possible and a variety of learning experiences manageable.

The following two videos offer a more compelling and profound way of articulating these reasons.

Embracing the Disruption

On the surface, engaging students in real experiences contextualized to their learning style seems like a very benevolent, common sense approach to teaching and learning. So why then is this paradigm so slow in being adopted in traditional education?

In his recent book, “Disrupting Class” author Clayton Christianson argues one of the larger reasons the existing stand and deliver approach has lasted so long is due to its management efficiencies… the economies of scale provided by herding students together, the nice numbers that come from Carnegie units and the sense of autonomy that comes with subjects in silos. Such efficiencies are more elusive and contrarian in constructivist learning environments, causing this otherwise common sense approach to be stunted in its adoption. That’s the perception anyway.

In realty, constructivist-minded schools can leverage tools such as Project Foundry® to both facilitate better teaching and learning as well as provide those certain management efficiencies seen in more traditional models. Project Foundry® is an online management tool used by students and teachers to streamline the project process, report learning standard completion and manage individual learning plans. The inquiry-based features integrated within Project Foundry® provide teachers opportunities to listen to student voice and provide feedback during the process rather than at the end. Likewise, the flexible nature of how projects, seminars and other learning activities are created and then managed allows the tool to support a learning model rather than dictate it. This all happening on top of individualized student learning plans that when cross-referenced provide a transparent, efficient way to ensure and manage student outcomes.

Learn more and sign up for a free trial of Project Foundry® at www.projectfoundry.org and look for “Disrupting Class” at amazon.com