PBL Videos


Below is a curated playlist of YouTube videos (up to 2021*) which focus on project-based learning best practices. Ready to be incorporated into PBL professional development sessions, each is tagged with an educational level: elementary, secondary, post-secondary, or multiple. Following each video is a set of questions that can be used as discussion prompts.

* Search for recently published YouTube videos about project-based learning.

2021-08-06 - 3:02 - Multiple - Why Project-based Learning Outperforms Traditional Instruction:



Discussion Questions

  1. The video claims that project-based learning outperforms traditional approaches to teaching and learning. Is this your experience?
  2. What are the three primary benefits of project-based learning that you would share with a teacher who is interested in learning more about PBL?
  3. No pedagogical technique is perfect. What are the downsides of project-based learning?



Below is a carefully selected playlist of YouTube videos which focus on project-based learning best practices. Ready to be incorporated into PBL professional development sessions, each is tagged with an educational level: elementary, secondary, post-secondary, or multiple. Following each video is a set of questions that can be used as discussion prompts.

2019-08-20 - 1:57 - Multiple - What Happens When Students Engage in Project-Based Learning?:



Discussion Questions

  1. This short video is chalk full of educational vernacular. Pick a single term and discuss its meaning. Does everyone in the group have a shared understanding of what this term means?
  2. Is there one specific term in the video which stands out for you as being particularly relevant to project-based learning? Is there a term that is mentioned in the video which you don't think strongly relates to project-based learning?
  3. What educational terminology is not mentioned in the video that could be added in terms of its applicability to project-based learning?



2018-10-18 - 2:31 - Multiple - Projects and Project-Based Learning: What's The Difference?:



Discussion Questions

  1. Share an example of a project you completed as a student in school. Did the project feature the characteristics of project-based learning as described in the video?
  2. What are the benefits and challenges of moving from 'projects' to 'project-based learning'?
  3. Share two goals for your own teaching that will strengthen the alignment of your course assignments with project-based learning.



2017-10-17 - 5:55 - Multiple - Project vs. Problem-based Learning:



Discussion Questions

  1. Drawing on the video, list three differences between project-based learning and problem-based learning.
  2. Which experiential learning approach - project-based learning or problem-based learning - is most appropriate for your teaching context?
  3. Pick a topic area and then divide into two groups. Ask one group to design a project-based learning experience which addresses the topic. Ask the second group to design a problem-based learning experience for the same topic. Ask the two groups to share what they have come up with.



2017-10-12 - 39:23 - Multiple - Session 9: Authentic Project-Based Learning (PBL) in CTE Classrooms:



Discussion Questions

  1. This video focuses on the intersection of K-12 and higher education. How might you adapt the advice in the video to the level of education you teach?
  2. A couple of PBL planning organizer examples are introduced. Design a custom organizer that either the teacher or student project team can use to help scaffold learning.
  3. Project-based learning should be rigorous and standards-based. How does the advice in the video (especially the conceptual model which is introduced at 7:00) scaffold this?



2016-09-19 - 2:22 - Post-secondary - Roger Williams University Talks About the Impact of WPI’s 2015 Institute on Project-based Learning:



Discussion Questions

  1. When you speak with other PBL educators, what aspects of their PBL experience you are most interested in learning about?
  2. Share a recent conference, workshop, or presentation that you attended that relates either directly or indirectly to PBL.
  3. If you were organizing a PBL conference for post-secondary educators, what topic sessions would you be sure to feature?



2015-05-12 - 6:28 - Elementary - Introduction to Project Based Learning (PBL) Process:



Discussion Questions

  1. What are the key takeaways from this video in terms of the essential features of project-based learning?
  2. Pick a PBL term that is used throughout the video and discuss its significance to your own school or university context.
  3. How would you need to adjust your pedagogical practices in order to incorporate PBL as explained in this video?



2014-09-19 - Post-secondary - WPI Students Reflect on the Value of Project Work (Video Playlist):



Discussion Questions

  1. What are the main takeaways from the students' reflections on their project work?
  2. How might the student reflections in this video series inform your own PBL practice?
  3. How do you encourage students to reflect on their PBL work in the projects you facilitate?



2014-06-26 - 6:30 - Multiple - Introduction to Project Based Learning (PBL) Process:



Discussion Questions

  1. This video emphasizes five key PBL principles: real world, core to learning, collaboration, student driven, and assessment. Discuss the significance of one of these principles in more detail.
  2. Reflecting on your own school or university context, how might you go about building real world connections between PBL and your teaching?
  3. This video is produced by Edutopia.org, one of the most popular educational websites. Browse the Edutopia.org website for articles about PBL. Pick one to discuss in detail.



2014-03-27 - 2:16 - Secondary - Innovations In Education: Project-Based Learning:



Discussion Questions

  1. Early on, the video identifies "critical thinking" as a key component of PBL. How is critical thinking supported by PBL in your teaching practice?
  2. The video recasts PBL teachers as "facilitators." What does this mean in practice for how teachers interact with students through PBL?
  3. The video posits that PBL can lead to fewer student suspensions and a higher graduation rate. Does this outcome seem reasonable to you?



2013-09-12 - 8:11 - Post-secondary - The AP50 Experience



Discussion Questions

  1. This video talks in detail about moving from a teacher-centered to a student-centered approach in a university Physics course. Would a similar student-centered approach work in your instructional context?
  2. Teamwork is an important component of this Harvard course. At the university level, how can instructors prepare students for collaborative project work?
  3. Would the pedagogical approach the video describes work in a social science or humanities university course?



2012-01-08 - 3:21 - Post-secondary - PBL Video Story - Island Team 2011:



Discussion Questions

  1. What were some of the online and offline communication strategies that the project team used to stay in touch with one another?
  2. Identify some of the effective project management practices the team employed in their project.
  3. The project team chose to make an adjustment to their project. How did they go about doing this in a way that ensured that the project did not go off track?



2010-04-23 - 5:34 - Secondary - Project Based Learning



Discussion Questions

  1. This video highlights how teachers in three different subject areas (history, English, and information processing) have collaborated together on PBL. In your teaching context, what three subjects might go well together?
  2. What benefits are associated with interdisciplinary PBL that involves multiple teachers working together?
  3. What might be some of the challenges?



2009-10-02 - 14:51 - Secondary - Project Based Learning at HTH:



Discussion Questions

  1. High Tech High, the focus of this video, is arguably the most well known PBL school in the U.S. What are some of the qualities of the school that endear it to PBL?
  2. Turn down the sound on the video and soak in the innovative physical design of the school and its "classrooms." How does the school's physical design inform its PBL practices (7:13)?
  3. What might be some of the important factors to consider in building a school wide PBL program from the ground up?