How to Write Project-Based Learning Driving Questions

​Last week's blog post was all about how to coordinate and implement self-directed project-based learning. Whether the experience is teacher-led or student-directed, writing a driving question is often the first step in PBL design. 

Free Template for Writing Driving Questions

Not all project-based educators find a driving question necessary. For a long time my students designed and executed self-directed PBL experiences without a driving question. Instead, they brainstormed a topic of interest or chose a subtopic under a theme assigned to them, and wrote a list of questions or categories to guide the research process.

That was fine, but I discovered after many years of doing it this way that my students were going through the motions of a research project without seeing the bigger picture or the purpose of the experience.

Project-based learning is about so much more than gathering statistics and gluing that info to a poster board. It is deep, sustained inquiry, with authentic, integrated, real-world experiences intermixed. My students were not seeing the latter. They were only seeing the short-term goal; a rubric score.

Because of this, I eventually started adding a driving question as a requirement. The purpose of a driving question is to make the how, what, AND the why clear as day. My students felt more confident going forward with their projects because their goals and purpose were written into their driving questions.

It took some time for my students to learn how to write driving questions. I still struggle myself at times. So I developed a process with clear directions that helped my students and I hope will help you as well. I have created a template as a guide for you and your students to write driving questions, and have added it to my free experiential learning resource library. Grab that here.

Free Template for Writing Driving Questions

If you have purchased any of my PBL resources you have seen that a driving question is written into the project plan. This post is intended to help you and your students write that question. Go grab your free template and let's get started! 

I have listed out the components that I include in a driving question. They do not have to be written in this order. Mix it up as long as they're included. 

How to Write a Project-Based Learning Driving Question in 5 Easy Steps

1. Question:

A driving question is a question after all, so it makes sense to have a question written into it. The question should be open-ended. If you ask a question that has one right or wrong answer, the experience is over. Encourage students to think in the upper levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.

The question could start with "How", "Should", "What", "Could" and so on. 

Example: How can our senior class create a free, interactive, digital career station for students and other job seekers in the community to make career inquiries seamless and accessible to all?

2. Action-Taker(s)

The action-taker is the person or group that will participate in the experience. This is written into the driving question so that students are clear on who will be involved, including partners and collaborators

The action-taker might be "I", "our economics class", "our neighborhood community", etc. 

Example: How can our senior class create a free, interactive, digital career station for students and other job seekers in the community to make career inquiries seamless and accessible to all?

3. Action

The action is what the action-takers will do or create. This is the "what" of the experience. What will they make? What service will they provide? This is essentially the final product or information that they will produce that will serve or impact the community.

Example: How can our senior class create a free, interactive, digital career station for students and other job seekers in the community to make career inquiries seamless and accessible to all?

4. Recipient

The recipient is an important piece of project-based learning. PBL is authentic, meaning the experience and outcomes should be relevant and impactful to those beyond the walls of the classroom.

An authentic presentation is an important component of project-based learning that distinguishes it from other teaching methods. Students do not share their final products exclusively with their teacher and class. They share it with the public, and not just the public in general, but a public audience that is relevant to the topic or final product. Who will receive the information or product is written into the driving question.

Example: How can our senior class create a free, interactive, digital career station for students and other job seekers in the community to make career inquiries seamless and accessible to all?

5. Impact

The impact is the "why", the purpose, the ultimate goal of a project-based learning experience. Students often ask me why we do something. Why are we learning this? The impact is their answer. This gives students a sense of purpose and desire to participate in the experience. I felt that the impact was lost without a driving question. 

The impact is what the action-takers wish to have on the recipient(s) of the final product or information developed during the experience. 

Example: How can our senior class create a free, interactive, digital career station for students and other job seekers in the community to make career inquiries seamless and accessible to all?

Again, mix and match these driving question components as you please. The idea is simply to provide students with clarity and purpose.

It will be a work in progress, and that is okay! Driving questions don't have to be perfect. 

​Good luck! 

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