Abstract:

In recent years, there has been a movement to align inquiry-based pedagogy with 21st century skills and the workplace.In the STEM context, Project and Problem-based Learning (PBL) strategies are inquiry-based and align well to 21st century skills. There are relatively few schools engaged in inquiry pedagogy as compared to schools using traditional instructional approaches. over the last decade, there has been a growing number of school initiatives that are working to transition schools away from traditional teaching strategies. These initiatives are starting to have an impact on student achievement as measured by standardized tests and school administrators, teachers and policy makers have begun to notice the potential of inquiry approaches, specifically project- and problem-based learning. PBL is an emerging strategy to facilitate reforming instruction in schools to meet the 21st century learning needs of the students they serve. In the US, schools struggle with implementing PBL, in part, due to the lack of experience and lack of preparation as part of university teacher preparation programs. As schools have begun to embrace PBL, university teacher preparation programs are having to modify their programs to assure that preservice teachers are prepared to implement PBL in the classrooms they will eventually work.There are a number of school-based programs that have been developed to support PBL in the classroom in the US. These include school models including the New Tech Network and Texas STEM Academies. These are whole school approaches that implement PBL as the primary pedagogy. School are also implementing PBL in certain disciplines versus school-wide. STEM has been a primary adopter as a discipline. Programs of note include Project Lead the Way (PLTW) and the GLOBE program. At the university level, the UTeach model has been developed and replicated across 40 US universities to prepare preservice teachers in PBL.
- What does the research literature say in regards to Project and Problem-based learning?
- What are the differences between Project and Problem-based pedagogy?
- What are the barriers to implementing inquiry as a primary classroom pedagogy?
- What teacher supports facilitate effective PBL in the classroom?
- What programs exist support teachers in the classroom?
- What role can teacher preparation programs play to prepare new teachers to implement PBL?
- How must teacher preparation programs evolve to support PBL and the development of 21st century skills?

Keywords:

PBL, Project-based Learning, Problem-based learning, 21st Century Skills, Teacher Preparation, Inquiry Pedagogy.