Project-based learning can shake up the status quo, according to Kinslow. But it still goes a little against the grain in many schools to get the parents and community involved. So at first glance, this can seem threatening. There is also the fear that by working on projects students won't achieve deep content knowledge. In many project-based classrooms, students are often very aware of district or state curriculum because these standards are included in the project assessment rubric.
Students have clear expectations to strive toward in their work.
Rather, it's students building on what they already know. It meets the standards. A project-based approach helps students to learn across standard curricular lines and takes learning out of the box of rote memorization. It makes learning much more relevant, and helps to build valuable critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It builds strong ties between school, community and parents.