Project-Based Learning Done Right: Aligning Academics, Skills and Careers

Once the decision was made, our teacher let us divide ourselves into four groups. The first group tended to the garden and harvested the vegetables, the second made the salsa in the school’s kitchen, the third marketed and sold the product, and the last group tracked the expenses and earnings.Because I loved (and still do) art and design, I joined the marketing group. We came up with witty slogans and wrote them in big, colorful letters on poster boards which we displayed around the school. We set up a booth where parents, staff, and students could purchase the glass jars of fresh salsa, and passed the money collected along to the fourth group to count and log it. Until recently, I saw this experience as a great example of project-based learning. And it did have some important components. We had voice and choice in how we would raise the funds. The task was clear—we each knew our roles and responsibilities, and what the product itself would be. By selling to parents and staff, we produced something that extended beyond our classroom. But as I learn more about the potential project-based learning has to drive deep learning and career readiness, I’ve come to realize that several key elements were missing from our salsa project.