Problem-Based Learning in Elementary School: What Strategies Help Elementary Students Develop? (SpringerBriefs in Education)

This book addresses Problem-based Learning (PBL) in elementary schools and reveals how this can promote elementary students’ development in critical thinking, creativity, communication, collaboration, and citizenship, also known as the 5 Cs. Through teachers’ interviews, the book explores which PBL strategies promote skills and knowledge gains when students collaboratively investigate authentic open-ended problems. It also uncovers peer-to-peer relational learning and other strategies used in PBL classrooms, and it examines their importance to public education.

The book paints a lively picture of student-centered learning, drawing upon frameworks, best practices, experiences, processes, strategies, and research results. Firsthand accounts of best practices in PBL instruction connect this pedagogy to theory, research, practice, and policy. It explores teacher instruction in the early years of schooling that purposefully fosters student-centered learning, real-world relevance,and collaboration in accordance with capacities expected of successful 21st century graduates. This book supports the implementation of PBL in elementary schools and promotes increased student engagement and achievement, as well as college and career readiness.  

This book is of interest to practitioners seeking information about PBL pedagogies for elementary grades, such as teachers, teacher mentors and trainers, (school) leaders, and policymakers, as well as anyone interested in pedagogic strategies that advance critical thinking, creativity, communication, collaboration, and citizenship capacities. 

Samantha S. Reed, EdD, is Principal at Hillsville Elementary, a PK–05 school in Virginia, USA. She has been serving for 8 years as an education leader. Previously, she was an elementary teacher and division math specialist. Her dissertation focused on problem-based learning and student development of 21st century skills. She is a graduate of the Educational Leadership program at Virginia Tech.

Carol A. Mullen, PhD, is Professor of Educational Leadership at Virginia Tech, USA, and a J. William Fulbright Senior Scholar alumnus. She is an internationally acclaimed, award-winning scholar whose research in education encompasses leadership, mentoring, creativity, and globalism using social justice lenses. Her Springer books include Revealing Creativity (2020); Veteran Teacher Resilience (with Shields, 2020); and Creativity Under Duress in Education? (2019, edited) Forthcoming is the Handbook of Social Justice Interventions in Education(edited). Her alma mater, the University of Toronto/Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (Canada), awarded her The Excellence (OISE Leaders & Legends) Award in 2020.

Emily T. Boyles, EdD, is Coordinator of English Learner Professional Development for Grayson County Public Schools in Virginia and Adjunct Professor at Fortune University in California, USA. She was formerly an elementary school principal, assistant principal, and high-school Spanish teacher. Her dissertation focused on principals’ support of student achievement in Title I schools within rural Appalachia. She has coauthored a book chapter and journal article. She is a graduate of the Educational Leadership program at Virginia Tech.