Note: This tutorial covers general Project-based Learning framework instructions. For specific IB guidance, please see configuring EE Worksheets, TOK Worksheets or Personal & Community Project Worksheets.
Overview
Creating New Projects or Editing existing Projects
To access the Project-based learning configuration navigate to Settings and select your academic programme. From the drop-down menu click Project-based Learning. You will see a list of active templates and have the option of creating new templates on the right navigation panel via the Add Templates button.
The New Project Template page allows you to predefine labels for your project.
- Title - Refers to the name of the Project-based learning project. It will be visible across ManageBac for all users (teachers, parents, and students).
- Abbreviation - The abbreviation is used to avoid repetition and in places where there isn't enough space to display the title.
- Logo - From the dropdown menu select a logo that describes your programme. The logo will be displayed on the student profile and Year Group calendar.
- Cover - From the dropdown menu, a variety of Cover photos is available with different colours to choose from.
- Subject - To display the project worksheets within a class, select the desired subject here. Displaying worksheets will be made available in an upcoming release. For now, we allow the ability to preselect a subject before the feature's release.
- Description - This is an optional field that will be displayed on the right navigational menu of the project page for both teachers and students
- Enable Project by Default - By selecting this option, this project will be enabled by default for any new Year Group created.
Framework
The Framework tab contains much of the configuration that will allow you to create a project fit for your needs. The options include:
- Proposal - This allows you to create a set of requirements that students will need to complete in order to have their project approved. Requirements can take one of four forms: text field, checkboxes, radio buttons, dropdown menu.
- Journal and Learning Outcomes - Similar to CAS and SA we allow for learning outcomes to be added. These outcomes are to be used to label journal entries. In configurations, admins are able to predefine the default learning outcomes for the project. These can be further modified in each year group.
- Reflections - Allow you to create a set of prompts to encourage teachers and students to reflect on the project's progress.
- To-Dos - Enabling to dos allows you to create deadlines linked to the project and specify, specific to-dos for each deadline. The deadlines along with the to-dos are displayed on the student's project worksheet.
- Documents - Enables the document uploader displayed on the student worksheet.
- Notes - Enabling this option allows students and teachers to send messages to each other on the student worksheet and it allows teachers to record interview notes, which are only visible to admins and teachers.
Terminology
The terminology fields shown above allow you to create a project that will be familiar to your teachers and students based on local requirements or cultural terminology. The hint, located below each field, provides an explanation of what each term is referring to.
Assessment
Project Term Rubrics
Term Rubrics can be added via Settings > Project-based Learning > Assessment. The three rubric types available are mark bands, criteria, and custom. The values added will appear in a dropdown and teachers will be able to select a value to represent the student's achieved value. The descriptors will be displayed in the right navigational menu next to the corresponding value to provide teachers with evaluation guidance.
Submitting Term Grades
In the Year Group, select a project and click Submit Term Evaluation from the right navigational menu to access the term gradebook for your project.
Customize Project Assessment Rubrics
Project rubrics allow you to create a set of rubrics that are to be used to assess the students' performance. The order of the rubrics in the settings will be preserved on the Project's Assessment tab in the Year Group. Mark Bands allow for a singular descriptor to be applied to a range of points. After teachers assess mark band rubrics the total points achieved will be displayed in the last row.
Guides
via Settings > Select Programme > Guides > Select Project tab
Customize the "Quickstart Guide" text box to edit the Section Guides, or add your school's Project-based Learning Handbook via Choose File. Be sure to Save Changes after updating.
Handbooks can also be found by students on the Files tab via Year Group Manager.
Enabling Project-based Learning
When creating a new Year Group, any Project marked as "Enable Project by Default" will be enabled automatically. More than one project can be enabled per year group.
Enabling Projects Within an Existing Year Group
Newly added project templates can be enabled within existing Year Groups via Edit Year Group Settings. Disabling a project will hide the project tab from the Year Group but it will not delete the student data. To view the student data, simply re-enable the project within the Year Group settings.