PBL adapts to ELT as a staged framework, but learners can’t be expected to already have the language a project needs. ‘Providing language input is a key to a successful PBL environment.‘
Stages
Generate & stimulate → define & refine (a learner-worded driving question that “can’t be Googled”) → designate & collaborate (SMART goals, visible roles) → compare & share (THINK mnemonic for peer feedback) → enhance & advance → review & revise → produce & present (to an audience beyond the class).
- A rotating English Captain per group keeps the group working in English.
Theory
Buck Institute PBL definition; Lightbown (2014) Focus on Content-Based Language Teaching (“much language is acquired through meaningful use”); MMM (Meet, Manipulate, Make it your own), cited via Brewster, Ellis & Girard, The Primary English Teacher’s Guide.
Limits
Written for teens and adults, with YL use adapted; nothing on low-level vocabulary or assessment.
Apply in my context (Claude)
- The English Captain role is a natural gamification hook (a rotating role badge), better than coins for using English, because it gives responsibility rather than a reward.
Connections
Dogme and TBLT share a philosophy, not a methodology · Rewards undermine interest in the rewarded activity