"Lehr und Kunst" or "Theory and Practice." - what we strive for in education

"Lehr und Kunst" or "Theory and Practice." (Learning and Skilled Arts) is the motto for my alma mater, WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute). I really like this as a motto for all education. 

 

The motto appears in the ribbon above the shield. The books represent theory and the arm and hammer represent the practice or skilled art.

We are trying to teach our students facts, knowledge and information, but they also have to be able to apply this to different situations. The practice of applying knowledge is so important. 

We talk about 21st century skills, like communicating, working in teams, life-long learning, analysis, applying, critical thinking, and problem solving. This is what we need to teach our students. They need to be able to learn skills and knowledge and then apply them to a situation. 

How do we do this? Project Based Learning, Contextual learning, internships, practicals, scenarios all help students learn theory and then apply it in practice. To help our students be successful, we need to help them learn theory and how to apply that theory.

Related:

WPI Plan - a great educational model for all schools

EMS Education Practices

Project Based Learning

10 Important Skills Students need for the Future

The future. What do our students really need to know and be able to do to succeed in future education and careers?

Content is a part of what they need to know. Standardized tests test content knowledge and some skills. There are huge debates raging over standardized testing, curriculum, and the like. But what it is that students really need to know for the future. Hint: it isn't all content.

Content is important to a point. Having certain knowledge of facts and information helps us put things in context as we work and live. Content helps us evaluate other information we are working with. However, in today's world of the web and smart phones, facts and content are less important. Students, and the workforce, need to know how to think critically, find and evaluate information, work in teams, communicate effectively, solve problems and apply knowledge and skills to new things and be able to learn on their own. These are some of the "21st Century Skills" that have been talked about for years. I agree that these are the most important skills and I feel that Project Based Learning is one of the best ways to teach these skills.

I learned many of these skills in college because even 20 years ago, my school, WPI, understood these ideas. The WPI Plan is an excellent model of project based learning, core competencies, and needed skills. This base has allowed me to be successful as an engineer, and successfully transition to being an educator. It has also helped me to learn on my own.

Research by the Institute for the Future released in a report entitled “Future Work Skills 2020″ shows that preparing for a specific career area based on content is difficult and, instead, people should be developing certain broad skills. These same skills are important for our students to learn. The report explains each of the skills in detail, and also goes into the implications for education and policies.

Here are the skills:

Sense-making. The ability to determine the deeper meaning or significance of what is being expressed

Social intelligence. The ability to connect to others in a deep and direct way, to sense and stimulate reactions and desired interactions

Novel and adaptive thinking. Proficiency at thinking and coming up with solutions and responses beyond that which is rote or rule-based

Cross-cultural competency. The ability to operate in different cultural settings

Computational thinking. The ability to translate vast amounts of data into abstract concepts and to understand data-based reasoning

New-media literacy. The ability to critically assess and develop content that uses new media forms and to leverage these media for persuasive communication

Transdisciplinarity. Literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplines

Design mind-set. Ability to represent and develop tasks and work processes for desired outcomes

Cognitive load management. The ability to discriminate and filter information for importance and to understand how to maximize cognitive functioning using a variety of tools and techniques

Virtual collaboration. The ability to work productively, drive engagement and demonstrate presence as a member of a virtual team

A summary map of the skills:

Related:
Project Based Learning resources

21st Century Skills resources

WPI Plan - a great educational model

ISTE - 21st Century Skills and Educational Technology


Resources:

The Institute for the Future and “Future Work Skills 2020″ 

Gigacom.com article (list of skills came from this site)

Experiments and Exploration are vital to science education!

This week, an article was posted about how some middle school science teachers felt that labs were messy and a waste of time in science. They stated that they could get the students to know the material better through lecture and a couple of demo's and the students just looked at labs as free time. They also stated that when they did less labs, the state test scores went up.

I'm horrified that these people are science teachers. Exploration and experimentation are vital to science and science education. Students need to learn how to explore, collect data, analyze, conclude and communicate what they found. They need to work in groups to solve problems. This is what people do in real life. They don't sit around getting lectured to.

Test scores are, unfortunately, being used to much as a measure of student learning, when in fact most of these tests are invalid and useless. I also find these teachers' comments about students treating labs as free time an indication that these teachers lack classroom management skills. I also think that the labs they are using are not well designed.

I can look up science facts online very easily. But that doesn't mean that I understand them, or can even evaluate if these "facts" are actually true. Science changes constantly as scientists and engineers explore the world and find new things and new ways of doing things. Remember these science "facts"-  the earth is flat, the earth is the center of the universe.

To succeed in any endeavor, a student needs to be able to think critically - they need to analyze and solve problems. They need to learn how to work as a team and communicate. They need to have an understanding of where science comes from and how it is explored. They need to understand that failures lead to answers also. They need a basic functional literacy in science. They can only get this through projects and labs.

These projects and labs should be hands-on, but there are also plenty of labs and investigations that can be done online, for free, and are still very educational. This is a great alternative to hands-on labs that are too expensive or possibly dangerous. Students can also use free web 2.0 sites to do projects, webquests, and more that will teach them so much more than facts.

As an Aerospace Engineer (worked for 10 years as an engineer before becoming a physics teacher) I can tell you that the only way I was successful is because I learned science and engineering through labs and projects. You can not learn to apply concepts and facts by sitting in a lecture hall. My college, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, understood this and they have a very unique educational program called the WPI Plan that is based on projects.

I'm very sad that some science teachers are focusing on facts and test scores rather than actual teaching and learning in their classrooms.


Here are two other articles by other educators who agree that this is not a good idea:

http://www.joebower.org/2011/10/science-labs-are-messy.html

http://davidwees.com/content/should-labs-be-part-science-education


And here are some more articles I've written on this topic:

WPI Plan - A Great Educational Model for All Schools

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-to-get-started-with-project-based.html

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-based-learning.html

Edutopia also agrees that their research shows that Project Based Learning, which includes labs, is very effective way to learn.


What do you think?

WPI Plan - a great educational model for all schools

There has been a lot of talk about education reform and what models will help our students learn the best. I submit that Worcester Polytechnic Institute's undergraduate program plan is a great model to follow. It stresses learning, critical thinking, functional literacy in a topic, project based learning, and student creativity. 
College was a great experience for me and I learned much more than just content. In fact, I feel that my undergraduate degree at WPI prepared me for anything I want to do in the future. Let me explain.

I went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in Worcester, MA. WPI is an excellent school, highly ranked, and offers an excellent educational experience. The school is small, with only 3,400 undergraduate students. But, the school is well equipped and well run. 

The secret behind the school's success is the unique curriculum, called the WPI Plan, consisting of 4 quarters instead of 2 semesters, 3 large projects, and course curriculum that are mainly project based. Each undergraduate has to complete a Humanities Sufficiency Project, an Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) and a Major Qualifying Project (MQP). 

The Sufficiency is a 3 credit project and course sequence in the humanities which ensures that all WPI graduates are well rounded. Instead of students having to take meaningless core courses, they develop their own plan and sequence. I took a writing course to help improve my writing skills and then took a sequence of courses in US Government and Foreign Policy before doing my project on the political use of air power in the Vietnam war.

The IQP is a 9 credit project done in the junior year which relates science and technology to society. My group did a project on the Quality of Technical Education in the United States. As part of it, we did research on different programs, school systems, number of students taking technical majors (engineering, science, etc.) and then surveyed current engineers and scientists about their college education and what they thought was good and bad about it. We also looked at how well high school's were preparing students for these types of college majors and made recommendations for high school programs. (which started my interest in education).

The MQP is a 9 credit project done in the senior year similar to a Master's thesis. My group designed a Two-Stage-To-Orbit space craft. We had to do everything from project planning, to engineering design and analysis, to working with NASA (who sponsored the project) to get information and feedback. The project then had to be presented and defended in our department. 

The project based curriculum helps students learn content and develop problem solving, communications, and teamwork skills. It also helps develop ethics and responsibility in the students. I found that my WPI education has prepared me for my career as an engineer, as well as an educator, and served me well in many capacities.

This plan stresses project based learning. Why? Because back when they developed the Plan (over 30 years ago) they knew that the only way to truly master subject area content is to apply it. They also knew that students needed to develop teamwork, communication skills, problem solving skills, creativity, critical thinking, and research skills (sounds like "21st Century skills" doesn't it?). WPI's symbol is the two towers of the first two buildings on campus. Lehr und Kunst. German for Theory and Practice, it's WPI's founding motto and the principle that still underlies the academic programs today. In class, in projects, and in research, students and faculty put knowledge into action to make the world better.

The projects are an integral part of the Plan. All classes are expected to use projects in their curriculum and the school has the three projects that all students must complete. The classes are taught by professors who are very dedicated to education, not just research. Each class is project based and emphasizes critical thinking and problem solving, along with a functional literacy of the topic, over memorizing data and facts.

I think that WPI was ahead of the game with their plan, considering this is the route that high schools and even middle schools are going. K-12 education is starting to realize how important these skills are and that project based learning is a great way to engage students while teaching them content and other needed skills.

I think that we can make more schools like WPI and do a better job of teaching our students the skills they need to know: teamwork, communications, problem solving, critical thinking, self-education and lifelong learning.

The students at WPI are given more control over their education by having the freedom to choose what they want to learn and how they are going to learn it. There are not a huge number of unneeded and useless "core" classes for students to take. Students create their own humanities program and their own educational plan. There is space in their schedule for them to take elective classes to explore new areas and topics. Students learn the basics and develop a fundamental literacy in each subject. Students do not memorize formulas and facts. They learn how to apply their knowledge to real-world problems and situations. For example, in Thermodynamics, we were taught the three laws of thermodynamics in depth. Then we were able to apply these to any situation instead of learning 10-15 different equations for different situations. This is in contrast to many schools who teach students every little equation for specific situations instead of teaching them the basics and how to apply the basics to any situation.

All of the learning, research and projects all have a purpose beyond just for class. Projects are all real-world applications or really are real-world projects. Student projects have included working to shore up the canals of Venice, design water systems for villages in Africa, developing medical equipment for disabled or sick patients, designing safety features for cars, and much more. This learning with a purpose gives meaning to what everyone is doing. This is very important in education.

WPI stresses teaching over research also and is very committed to the quality of the professors. Professors who have issues with their teaching or have poor reviews by students (each class has a evaluation form done by every student and these are taken very seriously) are given support and help in changing and improving their teaching. They are not vilified. They are supported and helped and that means that they become better educators. This is what we need to do with K-12 educators - help them when they struggle, not demonize them as the reason for the failure of society.

The WPI Plan is an excellent model for schools to use as a way to make education more personalized, engaging, relevant, and effective in preparing students for the future. The education there goes beyond preparing them just for the major they are in. The education prepares students for life. They are prepared to continue their education, adapt to new situations, and even change careers from engineering to education. It is truly a unique and effective way to teach and learn.

Related Posts:
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2010/04/great-educational-ideas-from-colleges.html
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/12/technology-in-use-in-engineering.html
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-based-learning.html
http://www.wpi.edu/News/Journal/Oct96/miracle2.html

Excellent Education Model - WPI's Plan

Last night I saw a Tweet from Gary Stager "garystager: @chrislehmann Why not make high school like a great college?"


I thought that this was a great idea! I know college was a great experience for me and I learned much more than just content. In fact, I feel that my undergraduate degree prepared me for anything I want to do in the future. Let me explain.


I went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in Worcester, MA. WPI is an excellent school, highly ranked, and offers an excellent educational experience. The school is small, with only 3,400 undergraduate students. But, the school is well equipped and well run.


The secret behind the school's success is the unique curriculum, called the WPI Plan, consisting of 4 quarters instead of 2 semesters, 3 large projects, and course curriculum that are mainly project based. Each undergraduate has to complete a Humanities Sufficiency Project, an Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) and a Major Qualifying Project (MQP).


The Sufficiency is a 3 credit project and course sequence in the humanities which ensures that all WPI graduates are well rounded. Instead of students having to take meaningless core courses, they develop their own plan and sequence. I took a writing course to help improve my writing skills and then took a sequence of courses in US Government and Foreign Policy before doing my project on the political use of air power in the Vietnam war.


The IQP is a 9 credit project done in the junior year which relates science and technology to society. My group did a project on the Quality of Technical Education in the United States. As part of it, we did research on different programs, school systems, number of students taking technical majors (engineering, science, etc.) and then surveyed current engineers and scientists about their college education and what they thought was good and bad about it. We also looked at how well high school's were preparing students for these types of college majors.


The MQP is a 9 credit project done in the senior year similar to a Master's thesis. My group designed a Two-Stage-To-Orbit space craft. We had to do everything from project planning, to engineering design and analysis, to working with NASA (who sponsored the project) to get information and feedback. The project then had to be presented and defended in our department.


The project based curriculum helps students learn content and develop problem solving, communications, and teamwork skills. It also helps develop ethics and responsibility in the students. I found that my WPI education has prepared me for my career as an engineer, as well as an educator, and served me well in many capacities.


This plan stresses project based learning. Why? Because back when they developed the Plan (over 30 years ago) they knew that the only way to truly master subject area content is to apply it. They also knew that students needed to develop teamwork, communication skills, problem solving skills, creativity, critical thinking, and research skills (sounds like "21st Century skills" doesn't it?). WPI's symbol is the two towers of the first two buildings on campus. Lehr und Kunst. German for Theory and Practice, it's WPI's founding motto and the principle that still underlies the academic programs today. In class, in projects, and in research, students and faculty put knowledge into action to make the world better.

The projects are an integral part of the Plan. All classes are expected to use projects in their curriculum and the school has the three projects that all students must complete. The classes are taught by professors who are very dedicated to education, not just research. Each class is project based and emphasizes critical thinking and problem solving over memorizing data and facts.

I think that WPI was ahead of the game with their plan, considering this is the route that high schools and even middle schools are going. K-12 education is starting to realize how important these skills are and that project based learning is a great way to engage students while teaching them content and other needed skills.

I think that we can make more schools like WPI and do a better job of teaching our students the skills they need to know: teamwork, communications, problem solving, critical thinking, self-education and lifelong learning.

The students at WPI are given more control over their education by having the freedom to choose what they want to learn and how they are going to learn it. There are not a huge number of unneeded and useless "core" classes for students to take. Students create their own humanities program and their own educational plan. There is space in their schedule for them to take elective classes to explore new areas and topics. Students learn the basics and develop a fundamental literacy in each subject. Students do not memorize formulas and facts. They learn how to apply their knowledge to real-world problems and situations. For example, in Thermodynamics, we were taught the three laws of thermodynamics in depth. Then we were able to apply these to any situation instead of learning 10-15 different equations for different situations. This is in contrast to many schools who teach students every little equation for specific situations instead of teaching them the basics and how to apply the basics to any situation.

All of the learning, research and projects all have a purpose beyond just for class. Projects are all real-world applications or really are real-world projects. Student projects have included working to shore up the canals of Venice, design water systems for villages in Africa, developing medical equipment for disabled or sick patients, designing safety features for cars, and much more. This learning with a purpose gives meaning to what everyone is doing. This is very important in education.

WPI stresses teaching over research also and is very committed to the quality of the professors. Professors who have issues with their teaching or have poor reviews by students (each class has a evaluation form done by every student. These are taken seriously) are given support and help in changing and improving their teaching. They are not vilified. They are supported and helped and that means that they become better educators.

The WPI Plan is an excellent model for schools to use as a way to make education more personalized, engaging, relevant, and effective in preparing students for the future. The education there goes beyond preparing them just for the major they are in. The education prepares students for life. They are prepared to continue their education, adapt to new situations, and even change careers from engineering to education. It is truly a unique and effective way to teach and learn.

Related Posts:
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2010/04/great-educational-ideas-from-colleges.html
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/12/technology-in-use-in-engineering.html
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/wpi-open-house.html
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-based-learning.html
http://www.wpi.edu/News/Journal/Oct96/miracle2.html

Great Educational Ideas from Colleges and the Boy Scouts

cross posted at Tech&Learning Magazine

I went to college at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, WPI, and majored in Aerospace Engineering. I worked for 10 years as an engineer before becoming a physics teacher. WPI has a unique curriculum, called the WPI Plan, consisting of 4 quarters instead of 2 semesters, 3 large projects, and course curriculum that are mainly project based. Each undergraduate has to complete a Humanities Sufficiency Project, and Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) and a Major Qualifying Project (MQP). The Sufficiency is a 3 credit project and course sequence in the humanities which ensures that all WPI graduates are well rounded. The IQP is a 9 credit project done in the junior year which relates science and technology to society and the MQP is a 9 credit project done in the senior year similar to a Master's thesis. The project based curriculum helps students learn content and develop problem solving, communications, and teamwork skills. It also helps develop ethics and responsibility in the students. I found that my WPI education has prepared me for my career as an engineer, as well as an educator, and served me well in many capacities.

This is the type of plan I try to use with my Physics students. I try to do as many labs, projects, and activities as I can because I know how well that works. The students are more engaged and tend to learn and remember concepts better. Project based learning is been proven to be a great way to educate students. In fact, WPI has done research on this topic. My IQP was on the quality of technical education in the US and we found that the students who did best in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) majors and careers were the ones who had a good background in high school, including collaborative projects. Other research at WPI has shown the same thing. Many educators and educational institutions also have shown that project based learning is a very effective way to teach and learn STEM topics.

WPI's Mechanical Engineering Department also has a great classroom called the Discovery Classroom. It is a lecture-style room with large tables for the students. It has multimedia capabilities, laptops for the students to use, and a room off to the side which contains equipment for demonstrations. This took a plain lecture hall and turned it into an interactive learning room.

WPI also has some great programs for incoming freshmen to introduce them to the school and STEM topics and help prepare them for the rest of college. High Schools would do well to have similar programs that would help freshmen obtain the skills necessary to be successful in high school.

Other colleges have similar programs that emphasize group projects, the interaction of technology and society and a base in the humanities. High schools have also been moving more and more towards project based learning because it has been proven to work.

K-12 education should take notice of some of the great and innovative things that colleges are doing and adapt them to their own schools. Many colleges have K-12 outreach programs and schools should take advantage of these.

I am also an Eagle Scout, which is the highest rank in the Boy Scouts. I learned a lot in the Boy Scouts besides certain skills in camping, hiking, and the like. I learned how to work as a team, how to be a leader, and how to plan things. In Boy Scouts, the adults are advisors and the scouts do the planning and running of events, training, and campouts. As an Assistant Scoutmaster, I worked with a group of 5 boys who planned and carried out a Camporee for over 500 scouts. The Boy Scouts aren't afraid to let the boys take charge and lead. The adults will step in when necessary, but the boys learn a lot by their mistakes too. The older, more experienced scouts help teach the younger, newer scouts. Discipline is also handled by older scouts and things run very smoothly.

I think schools should do more to let students make decisions and run things. Let the students come up with ideas for lessons, projects, programs and more. Let them lead these projects and have the teachers advise them. The students will learn valuable skills and feel what it is like to take charge of a situation. Have students teach and tutor other students. Have upperclassmen be mentors to the underclassmen.

Some schools already do these things, but others would do well to look outside for ideas for new and innovative programs. Colleges, youth groups, the military, and even business and industry have plenty of great programs and ideas for doing things. Many of them can be brought into K-12 education and can be used to improve student engagement, achievement, and skills building. We have a large number of problems in schools now, and educators have to be creative in coming up with ways to address them. Look to these other organizations for ideas and help. We don't have to do it on our own.

Please share your ideas of things from outside education that could be used inside education.

Resources/more information:

http://www.wpi.edu/

http://www.scouting.org/scouting.aspx

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-to-get-started-with-project-based.html

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2010/01/should-we-force-students-to-learn.html

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2010/03/whos-responsible-for-failing.html

Technology in use in Engineering

I have a Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and I worked for 10 years as an engineer before becoming an educator. I still do some consulting and keep up to date in the field. With all the talk about educational technology, I thought it would be nice to share some of the technology currently being used by engineers so that educators have an idea of what college students will be learning.

Engineers, like everyone else, use office productivity tools (MS Office, Google Docs), email, and the internet. In fact, the internet is one of the engineers' best tools. Research, online catalogs from vendors, online reference guides and calculators, and discussion groups and forums are all used on a daily basis.

Computer Aided Design (CAD) is the next major technology that engineers use. Products are designed in 3D on the computer, analyzed, fit checked, and simulated before prototypes are even built. Multi-physics simulation software, Finite Element Analysis, and Computational Fluid Dynamics software are critical to being able to design, analyze, and test products virtually before spending more money on manufacturing and live testing. They can analyze and simulate almost everything that a product would go through, virtually.

There is also Bill of Material (BOM) software to keep track of all the pieces and parts, Manufacturing software to help the engineers figure out the best way to build a product and then programming the equipment to do the work.

3D printers are used to make functional models of the product for early testing. They either strip away material, or lay down material (a plastic) to create the parts. These 3D printers can fit on a desktop. There are also 3D scanners that can be used to take a real part and turn it into a 3D model in the computer.

When I worked at Sikorsky Aircraft, we did everything on the computer. Design, analysis, simulation, manufacturing layout, communications, coordination, and more. Even our manuals and references were all online. If we printed something out, it had a watermark on it saying that the computer network should always be checked for updated information.

Computers and software have always been important in engineering, but as computers have gotten more powerful, so has software and the tools that can be used. Things change quickly, so engineers have to be able to learn new software and tools on their own.

As a high school physics teacher, I teach 90% seniors. This means that I am usually the last science teacher that they will have in high school (they may be taking two sciences). I try to expose them to project based learning (how WPI does things and how engineers work) and different types of software and systems that are out there for science and engineering. I try to teach them how to do their own research and how to learn things on their own, because I know that is what they will need to be able to do in college and in the workplace.

I also try to encourage students who are interested in and good at science to look at engineering as a career. Our world needs more engineers to solve the world's problems and continue with improving our standard of life.

Engineering is obviously not the only career field using technology - medicine, manufacturing, even retail, all use technology in ever increasing ways. This means that the more our students are exposed to technology, the better prepared they will be for college and the workplace.

More information on engineering and engineering resources for educators:

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/engineering-resources.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engineering

WPI Open House

WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute), my alma mater (Aerospace Engineering, 1992), is having an open house for high school students next Monday, Columbus Day. WPI is a great school and has been recognized for its innovative programs and curriculum. They are mainly a science, math, engineering, and technology university, but also have humanities majors. The WPI Plan is a project based curriculum that the university has used for decades, and includes 3 major projects and a unique class schedule. Here is another article that I wrote about it.

I always recommend WPI to students looking at science, math, engineering, or technology fields. The school is small, but has excellent facilities and resources, allowing students to really explore their chosen field of study.

Here is the announcement:

WPI to Host Columbus Day Open House for High School Students

Worcester Polytechnic Institute's Office of Admissions offers several ways for high school students and their families to learn more about the university and see the beautiful campus. One way is through Open House events, where high school students can get a comprehensive look at campus, including academics, student life, athletics, admissions, and financial aid. Through this experience, prospective students also have the opportunity to ask questions of staff, faculty and students. The next Open House will be held on Columbus Day, Monday, Oct. 12, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The agenda for our October Open House is available. Please note that sessions and locations may change before the event, and prospective students should obtain a printed copy of the agenda upon their arrival.

Check-in for the Open House is at Harrington Auditorium.

Please pre-register for your Open House visit. If you are unable to attend one of the Open Houses, you may consider WPI's other opportunities to visit.

We look forward to seeing you on campus!

Project Based Learning

Project Based Learning - a relatively new idea in high school education, but something I was exposed to many years ago (21) as a freshman at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). I received my Bachelor's Degree in Aerospace Engineering in 1992 and my education at WPI has served me well in a variety of capacities. WPI is mainly a science, technology, engineering, and math school, with some other majors mixed in. 

WPI has a unique learning system, called the WPI Plan. This plan stresses project based learning. Why? Because back when they developed the Plan (over 30 years ago) they knew that the only way to truly master subject area content is to apply it. They also knew that students needed to develop teamwork, communication skills, problem solving skills, creativity, critical thinking, and research skills (sounds like "21st Century skills" doesn't it?). 

The projects are an integral part of the Plan. All classes are expected to use projects in their curriculum and the school has three projects that all students must complete. The Humanities Sufficiency is a set of 5 themed humanities courses followed by a 1 course long independent study. This project is meant to make the student more well rounded. The IQP (Interactive Qualifying Project) is a team project studying the effects of technology on society or using technology to benefit society that is equivalent to 9 credits. The MQP (Major Qualifying Project) is also equivalent to 9 credits and is a major project in your subject area, similar to a senior thesis.

I think that WPI was ahead of the game with their plan, considering this is the route that high schools and even middle schools are going. K-12 education is starting to realize how important these skills are and that project based learning is a great way to engage students while teaching them content and other needed skills.

I try to use projects when ever possible in my classes. I found that my WPI education has taught me more than the STEM subjects, it has taught me valuable skills that have allowed me to be successful as a teacher, paramedic, engineer, manager, consultant, and husband. I would love to see high schools implement a more structured project based curriculum and provide more support for teachers. I think many teachers are afraid of projects because they fear that the students will not get all of the content that they need. However, if the project is structured properly, the students will get the content in order to complete the project. They will get the content, develop teamwork, communication skills, problem solving skills, and learn organization. They will also get to be social with other students which is very important to them.

Technology can help with project based learning. I always wonder what we could have achieved back then if we had the World Wide Web as it is now. All we had was email and some ftp sites. Students can use technology to do research, organize their projects, and then present their projects as presentations, web sites, blogs, or videos. 

For more information on project based learning, see WPI, Edutopia, PBL, or Google it.