inquiry should lead students to construct something new – an idea, an interpretation, a new way of displaying what they have learned.

• results in a publicly presented product or performance. With main course Project- Based Learning, what a student knows is demonstrated by what he/she does, and it must be open to public scrutiny and critique.

• allows some degree of student voice and choice. Main course Project-Based Learning is not a paint-by-the-numbers experience. Students learn to work independently and take responsibility when they are asked to make choices. The opportunity to make choices and to express their learning in their own voice also helps to increase students’ educational engagement.

• requires critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and various forms of communication.

To answer the Driving Question or Challenge and present high-quality work in main course Project-Based Learning, students need to do much more than remember information—they need to use higher-order thinking skills. They also have to learn to work as a team and con- tribute to a group effort. They must listen to others and make their own ideas clear when speaking, be able to read a variety of material, write or otherwise express themselves in vari- ous modes, and make effective presentations. These skills, competencies, and habits of mind are often known as “21st Century Skills,” for they are considered a prerequisite for success in the 21st Century (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2008).

Project-Based Learning is a filling meal of rich content knowledge and the skills valued by employers in a globalized economy (Wagner, 2008). If we wish to prepare a generation of students who can solve real-world problems, we must give them real-world problems to solve. If we want to graduate students who can manage their time and collaborate with oth- ers, we must give them guidance and practice managing their time and collaborating with others. The older, dessert model of “doing a project” may taste sweet, but it is not going to enable 21st century students reach 21st century learning goals.

Helping the Chefs Meet 21st Century Goals for Students

A minority of individual teachers across the country are doing the hard work of planning and cooking up nutritious main course Project-Based Learning and preparing their students to reach 21st century goals. However, these efforts are not reinforced by similar practices in other classrooms where the majority of students never get this opportunity. While it is pos-

31 Virginia Educational Leadership Vol. 7 No. 1 Spring 2010