The 17th Symposium on English
Language Teaching
“Language for life; Matching Classroom Strategies to
Real World Needs”
Building Students’ 21st Century Skills
through Project-Based Learning
Khitam Al-Utaibi
iEARN-Jordan Representative
March 9th , 2013
Amman, Jordan

International Education and Resource Network
Learning with the world, not just about it

Learning with the world,
not just about it…
2 million Students
40,000 Educators
130 Countries
300 Projects
30 Languages

Since 1988, a global network of 130 country programs has emerged…

global project model:
meets educational objectives, addresses issues, topics and
challenges that young people care about
Millennium Development Goals
Project

Projects in all Curriculum Areas
Arts & Literature
Social Studies
Math & Science
Languages & ESL
Adaptable to meet national (state) standards

Collaboration Centre for communication and
sharing

iEARN is…
The largest project-based
K-12 network in the world!
25,000 schools and youth organizations in 130 countries.
www.iearn.org
Collaboration in Education Works!

iEARN-Jordan
• Started in Jordan in 1999 and was coordinated by different administrations on
small scale.
• In Sep 2009, iEARN –Jordan was approved by the iEARN International Assembly
and now is coordinated by Ms. Khitam Al-Utaibi.
Achievements:
– Video Conference Seminar between Department of Education -US and
Jordan Ministry of Education for high school students to talk about Global
Warming . Ten Students from public schools in Directorate of Education -
Amman 1st. (Dec 2009)
– Workshop for 11 teachers from private schools in Amman. (Dec 2010)
– Workshop for youth specialized in IT. (Feb 2011).
– Workshop for Al-Hassad Private School teachers (March 2012)
– Presentation in the ALC Conference
Where you can find us:
You may find us on our Facebook iEARN-Jordan. Visit, like and share! Thanks!

Examples of iEARN Online Projects
• Beauty of the Beasts
• Future Citizen Project
• My City and Me
• To Dam or Not to Dam (Rivers), That is the
Question

Research on the Role of Student
Characteristics in Project-Based Learning
• There is a frequently voiced claim that
Project-Based Learning is an effective
method for prompting heretofore
reluctant and disengaged students
(e.g., low-achieving students) to become
motivated and engaged learners (Jones
et al., 1997).

Challenges and frustrations!
Where do they come from?
• The formal education system:
– Human: Teacher, Supervisor, Principal, student
– Facility: classrooms, computer labs, science
labs, library, other (gym, music room,)
– Curriculum: standards, textbooks, e-content
– Technology and applications: internet?,
intranet?, video conferencing, online courses,
distance collaboration
• Home, neighborhood, self, etc!

Introduction to Collaborative Project Based Learning through iEARN
Handout 9.1 Steps to Planning Successful Online Projects
1. Project Planning
a. Be familiar with the topic you will teach; consult textbooks
and other resources for teachers
b. Establish a working environment with co-teachers
c. Brainstorm ideas
2. Project Design
a. Define the goal of the project - It is very important that
the student goals you specify for the activity are:
– Tied directly to the curriculum
– Could not be accomplished at all, or as well, using more traditional learning
tools. The collaboration must bring added value either in content or process.
b. Think about the project activities. If this is your first
attempt at bringing collaboration into your class, aim for
creating a short activity.

Introduction to Collaborative Project Based Learning through iEARN
Handout 9.1 Steps to Planning Successful Online Projects
c. Choose the final report format
– Writings
– Art project (wall chart, poster, mural)
– Electronic (slide presentation, website, audio, video)
– Performance (debates, games, interviews, panel discussions, plays, songs)
d. Choose appropriate assessment methods
e. Construct appropriate assessment tools
– Assessment rubrics
– Peer evaluation forms
– Self evaluation forms
f. Describe teacher and student roles
g. Decide on student groupings

Introduction to Collaborative Project Based Learning through iEARN
Handout 9.1 Steps to Planning Successful Online Projects
3. Call for Collaboration
– Find teachers who are willing to get their students to participate in your project
– Write an invitation that describes who you are, where you are located, why you
are doing this project (as part of your curriculum), what the project is about,
when the project will start and how long it will last.
– Be prepared to answer inquiries from other teachers.
4. Implementation
– Start the project with an opening activity
– Initiate communications
– Communicate regularly
– Keep communications alive
– Have students write progress reports
– End with a final, tangible product such as a report, a video, a list of “winners”,
shared results, content analysis or a web page.
– Schedule a closure date and make sure all class contributions are received in a
timely fashion.

Introduction to Collaborative Project Based Learning through iEARN
Handout 9.1 Steps to Planning Successful Online Projects
5. Facilitation and Collaboration
a. Revisit group and personal action plans
b. Adjust schedules and activities, as needed
6. Evaluation
a. Assemble outputs into a portfolio
b. Reflect on experiences
c. Assess student learning
7. Dissemination
a. Share experiences with colleagues through publications and
presentations
b. Update the Project Website

Project Based Learning: Explained.

The Coming to California Project

Handout
RUBRIC EXAMPLES
ORAL PRESENTATION I
RUBRIC EXAMPLES
ORAL PRESENTATION II

Exercise
Team Work

The Coming to California Project
Three management strategies helped make the project successful.
• First, teachers closely monitored the pace and direction of
project activities using weekly progress reports that included
teacher observations, weekly student progress logs, and Friday
debriefings.
• Second, as the teachers mapped out the project, they used five
different grouping strategies to ensure greater productivity and
accountability.
• Third, different learning contexts helped students stay enthused
during a long project. In addition to working in class and at
home, students conducted research in the library and in the
community, presented to other classrooms and to the
community in an all-school assembly, and worked on the mosaic
in a studio near the school.

Thank You 
To know more about iEARN-
Jordan, you may contact me
through email:
iearnjordan@aol.com