Project-based learning (PBL) is another collaborative, learner-centered instructional approach where students work in groups to construct their knowledge and gain mastery of the course content. Project-Based Learning is often confused with Problem-based Learning. One source of the confusion is that they have the same acronym PBL. One way to think about the difference between the two is to look at the outcome. While in Project-based Learning, students have to produce an artefact to demonstrate their mastery of content, in Problem-Based Learning, students have to present a solution to a clearly defined authentic problem. This definition is simplistic but allows for a distinction between the two concepts. Also, it has been argued that Problem-based Learning is, in fact, a subset of Project-based Learning in the sense that one way an instructor can frame a project is by asking students to solve one or many problems.
Semantics set aside, here is, in a nutshell, a comparison between project-based learning and problem-based learning.
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Project-based Learning |
Problem-based Learning |
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Project-based Learning begins with the assignment of tasks that will lead to the creation of a final product or artefact. The emphasis is on the end product.
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Problem-based Learning begins with a problem that determines what students study. The problem derives from an observable phenomena or event. The emphasis is on acquiring new knowledge and the solution is less important.
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