Teachers as Curriculum Designers: Approaches to Designing Equity-Committed Project-Based Learning

• In Event: Constructing Educational Possibilities With Teachers at the Center of Project-Based Learning Design and Enactment

Abstract

Purpose
This paper examines teachers as designers of PBL curriculum, with a specific recognition for how equities and inequities are often created and perpetuated in design processes. We explore cross-cutting ideas of the approach to designing equity-committed PBL curriculum identified in our curriculum review of six year-long PBL curricula.

Perspectives
The features of design-based implementation research (Penuel et al., 2011) and more explicitly equity-focused areas of design research—such as participatory design (Vakil et al., 2016) and community-based design (Bang et al., 2016) – are important for creating high-quality materials that elevate the ideals described in this paper.

Methods & Data Sources
This paper is part curriculum review and part theoretical in nature, examining PBL curriculum, literature, and educational theories that can inform equity in the design of PBL curriculum. Data for this paper were pulled from a literature review of design principles and related curricula for project-based learning curriculum.

Results
We have identified six cross-cutting themes for PBL design processes.
Use principles and lenses to guide design choices. In the previous work (Author, 2022), we described interconnected Design Principles and Critical Lenses curriculum designers need to consider when developing a curriculum.
Be critical and reflective in the development process. We call out the importance of attuning to issues of equity within the design of PBL curricula. If a curriculum is going to meet the needs of each and every student, especially those who have been historically marginalized or excluded, teacher developers must look closely at their own existing practices in design.
Students and community participate in the process. Teacher designers must engage students and their communities in the design process in ways that value their perspectives.
Iterate on design. Cycles of classroom implementation and feedback from teachers and students should inform PBL curriculum design. The cycles of revision allow the complex interplay of principles and lenses presented here to be strengthened over time.
Allow for adaptation and flexibility in the curricula. Many of the PBL principles and lenses require an approach to curriculum design and implementation that is responsive to the students’ identities, strengths, and interests. This means that a teacher must be able to flexibly adapt a project or activity to local contexts and student needs.
Develop curricula with professional learning in mind. The shift in teacher practice required for PBL that is equitable and supports whole-child development requires strong professional learning experiences for teachers. Therefore, it is important that teacher curriculum designers plan for how they will support teacher practice (their own and others) beyond the confines of the instructional materials.

Scholarly Significance
This paper centers teachers as designers of PBL curriculum. The process of developing a curriculum is not independent from its implementation and the design process must support implementation. We present six themes on PBL design, specifically with an eye towards equitable design.

Authors

• Gavin Tierney, California State University - Fullerton

• Rochelle Urban, Digital Promise

• Gina Olabuenaga, AdaptiveX