A Companion to Interdisciplinary Stem Project-based Learning

by Robert M. Capraro, Mary Margaret Capraro, Jim Morgan (Editor)

This text contains 24 Project-Based Learning (PBL) lessons written by high school teachers (adaptable for middle school) that include lesson appropriate for all subjects. All the PBL lessons in the book were used in urban high-school classrooms. The lessons were developed over a three-year period while working with the Aggie Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Center. The PBL lessons are mostly extended activities but adaptable to various situations and are interdisciplinary covering science, mathematics, technology, engineering, social studies, and language arts objectives. Each chapter contains the information necessary to implement each lesson, including handouts, scenario descriptions, rubrics for scoring, and all the elements likely to ensure successful implementation. All lessons include both formative and summative assessment tools as well as a separate section on assessment with sample multiple-choice items matched to high-stakes assessments common in most states. This practical book is the perfect companion to the handbook for learning about implementing PBLs: Project-based Learning: An Integrated Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Approach.

254 pages, Paperback

First published February 12, 2010

About the author

Robert M. Capraro, is Co-Director of the Aggie STEM Center and Professor Mathematics Education in the Department of Teaching Learning and Culture at Texas A&M University. Dr. Capraro's expertise is applied research in school settings, program evaluation, the teacher as change agent for STEM school improvement, and STEM student achievement. He recently received the best paper award from the International Conference on Engineering Education where he and two colleagues presented their work related to the Aggie STEM project. He is currently involved in research in four school districts and more than 20,000 students and 80 teachers. His editorial work includes Associate Editor of the American Educational Research Journal, School Science and Mathematics, and Middle Grades Research Journal and the Research Advisory Committee for the Association of Middle Level Education. He was selected as a minority scholar for 2007 by the Educational Testing Service and served as president of the Southwest Educational Research Association. He is the author or co-author of three books, several book chapters and more than 100 journal articles on mathematics education, quantitative research methods, and teacher education published in such venues as Journal of Mathematics Education, International Journal for Studies in Mathematics Education, Journal of STEM Education: Innovations and Research, International Journal of University Teaching and Faculty Development, LEARNing Landscapes, Special Issue: Mind, Brain and Education, Journal of Mathematical Behavior, European Journal of Psychology of Education, The Journal of Mathematical Sciences and Mathematics Education, Urban Review, Journal of Urban Mathematics Education, Educational Researcher, Cognition and Instruction, Educational and Psychological Measurement.