5-year Plan for Successfully Implementing Project Based Learning | E240
In this episode, Ryan Steuer of Magnify Learning details a five-year implementation plan for launching a Project-Based Learning (PBL) movement in a large district, specifically focusing on 13 middle schools. While the example is niche, the process is designed to be customizable and scalable for districts of any size. The episode emphasizes the importance of systematic, structural change, starting with district leadership, and leveraging the "innovation curve" to ensure widespread adoption and sustainability.
Key Takeaways & Implementation Steps:
- Magnify Learning & PBL Networks
- Magnify Learning has over a decade of experience in PBL, stemming from a grassroots collaboration among educators.
- We are launching free PBL Networks in October to provide a safe space for educators to process ideas, collaborate, and share best practices across different PBL niches (e.g., PBL and CTE, PBL and STEM, PBL and Maker Spaces, PBL and SEL, PBL and UDL). Find more at pblnetworks.com.
- Collaboration is key: You should never do PBL alone.
- Foundation: District Leadership & Goals
- The implementation must start with district leadership, not a top-down mandate.
- Involve both secondary and elementary leaders from the outset to align mindsets and processes.
- Clearly define the goals of PBL for the district and individual middle schools, aligning them with the district's mission, vision, and "profile of a graduate".
- District leaders must model student-centered practices; principal meetings should be collaborative, not "sit and get". If district leadership isn't ready to collaborate, the initiative needs to pause and address that foundational work.
- Building the District PBL Team & Plan
- Establish a district PBL design team of 6-10 central office members.
- Dedicate two-day design sessions to develop the comprehensive 5-year implementation plan.
- Go "beyond the why" to articulate the district's collective purpose for this work.
- Leveraging the Innovation Curve
- Identify innovators: Map all 13 middle schools onto an innovation curve to identify which are "innovators," "early majority," and "late majority". This is crucial for guiding the timeline.
- Focus on "crossing the chasm": The biggest challenge is bridging the gap between early adopters/innovators and the early majority. This is why a 5-year plan is essential.
- Define roles for innovators: The initial 1-2 innovator schools will implement PBL first, transparently, and are tasked with creating resources (like group contracts, planning forms) for subsequent cohorts. This empowers them and provides tangible tools for others.
- Customized Implementation: While the process is systematic, each school's implementation will be customized based on their readiness (e.g., starting with a specific grade level, subject, or wall-to-wall). The "best way" is what the school's leadership and teachers are most ready for.
- Planned Supports & Training (Before Launch)
- Leadership Training: Innovator school leaders will receive training similar to the central office team, focusing on creating school-level leadership teams, structures, and processes for PBL sustainability.
- Teacher Training: Multi-day training, including coaching, to build a PBL mindset and culture, not just mechanics. This includes:
- Leadership: Design Days, Deeper Practice, Sustainability Days (over 3 years).
- Teachers: PBL Jump Start (theoretical unit creation), PBL Advanced (reflection, curriculum mapping), and PBL Certification (by end of Year 3 for sustainability).
- Pre-planning is paramount: All training, coaching, and support pathways must be planned out before the official launch to avoid "shooting from the hip" and to assure the early/late majority there's a clear plan.
- The 5-Year Implementation Timeline (Example for 13 Middle Schools):
- Year 1:
- District: Share vision and 5-year timeline with building leaders, have 1-on-1 conversations with innovators. Explain the "why" behind the phased approach.
- Cohort 1 (Innovators - e.g., 2 schools): Establish school leadership teams, build 3-year building-level plans, launch initial PBL units, and make work public through "exposes" (showcases) to invite other schools. Staff attends a PBL "jump start" over the summer.
- Year 2:
- District: Form a PBL advisory team, identify "bright spots," train principals on key leadership needs, and begin reviewing administrator evaluations and aspiring leadership pathways to align with PBL.
- Cohort 1: Leadership teams conduct "roses, buds, thorns" reflections, addressing teacher needs (e.g., schedule, PD, evaluations). Teachers continue public showcases and create district-wide tools (rubrics, contracts). Teachers attend "PBL Advanced" over the summer.
- Cohort 2 (Early Majority - e.g., 8 schools): Begin with leadership team design days and teacher "jump start" training, then implement and showcase work.
- Year 3:
- District: Invest in the PBL advisory team, train principals on evolving needs, continually share the vision, and introduce refined administrative evaluations and aspiring leadership pathways.
- Cohort 1: Leadership teams focus on "sustainability days" to ensure processes outlive individuals. Teachers collect data, share artifacts, publicize work through news and district channels, and achieve PBL Certification over the summer to train new hires.
- Cohort 2: In their second year of implementation.
- Cohort 3 (Late Majority - e.g., 3 schools): Begin with leadership team design days and teacher "jump start" training, having observed 10 other schools and gained insights.
- Year 4:
- District: Plan for sustaining the work beyond year five, including establishing PBL district coaches (ideally two for mentorship and continuity).
- Cohort 1: Lead and collaborate with other schools.
- Cohort 2: In their final year, getting PBL certified.
- Cohort 3: In their second year (PBL Advanced).
- Year 5 (Final Year of Initial Rollout):
- District: Administrative evaluations and aspiring leadership pathways are fully established. New "normals" are in place.
- All Middle Schools: Every middle school has a leadership team and PBL certified teachers, ensuring sustainable structures and processes. Schedules, evaluations, and PLCs are synergistic with PBL.
- Leaders: Continuously invest in their people and lead, rather than just manage.
- Community Partners: Integrated as a normal part of school, helping shape the school's positive narrative.
- Outcome: Middle schools become models of innovation, inspiring PBL adoption in elementary and high schools.
- Overarching Philosophy of Change
- "Go slow to go fast": Rushing implementation leads to foundational problems.
- Innovation starts at the top and must be modeled.
- Leaders must "cross the chasm" by meeting the early majority on their terms, providing clear plans and supports.
This is a long game to fundamentally change mindsets, structures, and redefine educational norms, ultimately growing people and systems to achieve desired outcomes for learners. It is challenging but doable and totally worth it.
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