“It's not what you look at that matters, it is what you see. ”

- Henry David Thoreau

“A teacher is one who makes himself progressively unnecessary.”

- Thomas Caruthers

“Education of knowledge should include knowledge of what to do with it.”

- Anonymous

“Children know how to learn in more ways than we know how to teach them.”

- Ronald Edmonds

Math and Project Based Learning

We have taught PBL and Technology Professional Development for 15 years, and one of the axioms of education that we have repeatedly heard from Principals, Teacher Coaches, and even Teachers is that the department that is least likely to use technology and most resistant to Project Based Learning is Mathematics. Ouch! Can someone please tell us how it is possible that the scientists, statisticians, and mathematicians of the next century will NOT be using technology in their work as adults?

PBL Associates has written technology centered, mathematics, project based learning curriculum for Apple Computer, Britannica.com, SRI International, Monterey Institute for Technology and Education, National Semiconductor, National Public Television, and National Public Radio.

We believe that high-performance mathematics AND technology AND project based learning go hand in hand. However, we do make an exception for 9th Grade Algebra. If 40-50% of American 9th graders are failing 9th grade algebra, we are willing to concede that this is NOT the class in which to teach 2-4 week projects. Rather, we coach how to teach 2-3 day activities that make algebra come alive in real-world contexts, as we prepare our mathematics students to collaborate in high-performance teams so that they will be prepared to create powerful project final products in Geometry, Advanced Algebra, Trigonometry, and Calculus. See our "Websites About PBL" for some powerful math projects for Advanced Algebra (conic sections) and Trigonometry (Law of Sines and Cosines).