From the 2016 KEEN Winter Conference: Glenn Gaudette and Chrys Demetry from Worcester Polytechnic Institute showcase the differences between project based learning and problem based learning. Learn more at www.EngineeringUnleashed.com/keen

1. KEEN Update Session
WPI Institute on Project Based
Learning
Chrysanthe Demetry, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Director, Morgan Teaching & Learning Center
Glenn Gaudette, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering

2. 2
What Constitutes Project Work?
• Authentic, open-ended problems
• Real, messy, interdisciplinary
• Goal, methods, criteria chosen by
students
• Requires integration, analysis,
synthesis
• Generation and communication of
useful results

3. 3
Objectives for Project-Based Learning
• Applying knowledge to complex
problems in practical settings
• Understanding problems in social
and cultural context
• Learning new topics quickly
• Communicating effectively in
written, oral, and visual forms
• Interacting productively with
teammates, faculty advisors,
sponsors, communities

4. 4
Projects Across the Curriculum at WPI
• 1st year: Great Problems Seminar
6 credit hours, interdisciplinary
• 2nd year: Humanities and Arts Capstone
Seminar or practicum in chosen area
• 2nd – 4th years: Course Project Work
E.g., formative engineering design
• 3rd year: Interactive Qualifying Project
(IQP)
9 credit hours, interdisciplinary gen ed
• 4th year: Major Qualifying Project (MQP)
9 credit hours, capstone in major field

5. Project Based Learning vs.
Problem Based Learning
Adapted from: J. Larner, Buck Institute, via Edutopia
Similarities
• Focus on an open-ended question or problem
• Provide authentic applications of content and skills
• Emphasize student independence and inquiry
• Are longer and more multifaceted than traditional assignments
Differences
Project Based Learning Problem Based Learning
Often multi-disciplinary More often single subject
May be lengthy (weeks, months) Tend to be shorter
Includes the creation of a product or
performance for a relevant audience
Product may simply be a proposed solution,
expressed in writing or in an oral presentation
Often involves real-world, fully authentic tasks
and settings
More often uses case studies or fictitious
scenarios as ill-structured problems
May be almost entirely student-directed Often includes pre-planned, staged instruction

6. Research on Project-Based
Learning at WPI
• Alumni survey
• Professional, world view, and personal impacts
• 25% response rate (n=2532)
• Alumni interviews
• 25 in-depth interviews to explore “why”
• Employer interviews
• Are WPI graduates different? How and why?
• 10 in-depth interviews across sectors
6

7. Overview of Findings
7
• IQP and MQP convey many positive impacts
─ a wide range of professional abilities and skills
─ broader world views and personal growth
• Some alumni groups report especially positive impacts
─ women
─ those who completed off-campus projects
• Alumni interviews reveal compelling stories of growth and
transformation
• Employers see project work as a proxy for the skills and abilities
they seek

8. WPI’s Institute on Project-Based
Learning
• Focuses on planning change at
institutional level
• 2.5 day intensive workshop
• Teams of 5 or more faculty and
administrators from about 20 varied
institutions
• Come with specific goal or initiative
they want to advance
• Leave with campus action plan
• Opportunity for monitoring and
follow-up

9. Institute Curriculum
• Interactive workshops (examples)
─ PjBL as a first year and general
education strategy
─ Partnering with external
organizations
─ Project team formation,
development, and mentoring
─ Assessment of PjBL
• Consultations and coaching
• Lots of team time

10. A Taste of the Institute:
Why doesn’t everyone do PjBL?
Pass the problem
• Each poster describes a “fear” or barrier to PjBL
• As a group, discuss strategies for managing or
overcoming the fear and write down your ideas (2 min)
• Rotate to the next poster
• After all groups are done, summarize responses and
report out (1 min each)

11. PjBL emphasizes ABET outcomes ranked
most important by employers for new hires
11
Engineering Change: A Study of the Impact of EC2000, Executive Summary, ABET, 2006, p. 11

12. Entrepreneurial Mindset Learning
in Project Based Learning (PjBL)
Elements of the Mindset Examples in PjBL
Curiosity
Demonstrate curiosity about our changing
world
Investigate cultural context of the project topic
Explore contrarian view of accepted solutions
Engage in questioning with multiple
stakeholders
Connections
Integrate information to gain insight
Identify, evaluate, and synthesize information
from multiple sources and disciplines
Assess and manage risk Real clients: real deadlines and consequences
Creating value
Identify unexpected opportunity Potential solutions are not pre-conceived
Persist through and learn from failure
Often, projects change when students talk to
stakeholders

13. Incorporating EML More Explicitly
in PjBL
IMGD MQP Idea Pitch Form
Working Title:
Advisor(s):
Sponsor:
Proposed Team Makeup:
___Art ___Tech ___Other (list): ___________________
Summary of Proposed Project:
Anticipated Impact (if successful, who will this project impact and how?)
Who:
How: How will project create value?

14. Comments from 2015 Participants
[Video Clip]
Julia Ross, Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology, U.
of Maryland Baltimore County
[Video Clip]
Simon Stacey, Affiliate Assistant Professor of Political Science and Director,
Honors College, U. of Maryland Baltimore County

15. Cost and Application Process for 2016
Institute on Project-Based Learning
• $8,500 per 5-person team
(includes housing, most
meals)
• Application questions:
─ Team/campus goals for PjBL
─ Need and readiness
─ Team characteristics
• Application deadline:
February 15, 2016