At ISTE, Teachers Share Strategies for Real-World Learning

At this year’s ISTE conference, which drew more than 15,000 educators to Denver, a focus on artificial intelligence dominated workshops, keynotes, and hands-on exploration stations. No surprise, given the rapid development of AI and the opportunities and challenges these new tools pose for teaching and learning.

Despite all the attention on the artificial, educators and thought leaders also engaged in deep discussions about making learning more real. The newly released Transformative Learning Principles, an evidence-based framework created by ISTE and ACSD, calls on teachers to make authentic learning experiences a priority. 

When teachers make the shift to more authentic learning, they have to wrestle with new questions. What does authentic learning mean for assessment? For addressing standards? For responding to diverse student interests? At ISTE, I was fortunate to co-facilitate sessions with inspiring teachers who shared their real-world strategies. Here are a few highlights.

Start with an authentic problem.

In Elizabethton, Tenn., teacher Alex Campell challenged his high school sociology students to solve a decades-old cold case. They rose to the challenge, earning global news coverage for their efforts to track down a serial killer and identify previously unnamed victims. In the process, they learned about sociology through profiling and victimology. They interviewed an FBI expert and presented their findings to prosecutors. Their project is the focus of a popular true crime podcast called Murder 101 (and, soon, will be featured in a major motion picture).  This is as real as learning gets.

At our ISTE session, Campbell acknowledged that not every project leads to such dramatic outcomes. But each example he shared started with an authentic problem that students wanted to tackle. To understand the past, for example, history students interviewed elderly residents of a care center and created memory boxes to remind them of their life stories. To learn how the opioid crisis has affected their rural community, students interviewed adults in recovery and produced animated videos (suitable for young audiences) about the underlying causes of addiction. 

These are not simulations, which I’ve heard students dismiss as “fake real.” In contrast, real-world projects create opportunities for students to connect with the people and problems of their own community. Students exercise their voice in authentic learning–identifying worthy problems themselves, navigating research that often extends beyond the classroom, and determining the best solutions. Key to student engagement is what Campbell calls “the human connection.” He looks for that connection in each project.

Plenty of planning goes into preparing for a real-world project and aligning learning to standards. On the first day, an entry event sparks curiosity and builds student engagement. In the cold case project, for example, Campbell used AI to craft letters in the voices of the six victims, requesting students’ help in tracking down their killer. 

Campbell plans for a mix of assessment strategies, from quizzes on content to formative check-ins about progress toward deadlines. But he cautions teachers to avoid being overly scripted. Students are likely to ask questions, propose solutions, and consider input from experts he has not anticipated. “You have to know when to let go—when to turn over control,” he advises.

These questions are worth considering before launching a real-world project:

  • Will the project connect to important learning goals?

  • Is there a “human connection” that will engage students?

  • Can technology help to spark curiosity or amplify student voice?

Solve problems with the processes experts use.

In another session, Wisconsin teacher Terry Kaldhusdal shared examples from the National History Day entries produced by his middle school students. NHD is an extended inquiry experience, with students’ products judged by professional historians and other experts. The experience gives students wide latitude in choosing a topic, as long as it relates to the annual contest theme.

“This is the first time students actually do history,” Kaldhusdal explained. Instead of memorizing dates and places, students conduct research, assess sources, develop original arguments, and create final products of their choosing (such as documentary, exhibit, website, or dramatic interpretation). They have to be ready to think on their feet, too, when asked to defend their analysis.

Having students take on an authentic role is another strategy to make learning more real. Taking on a real-life role builds disciplinary understanding, as students apply the tools, practices, and thinking strategies of the experts. As historians, students develop their own interpretations of the past, based on reliable evidence. In other projects, I’ve seen students take on the role of environmental scientist to mitigate pollution in a local watershed, novelist to create an illustrated children’s book, or data analyst to understand how food deserts affect children’s health. In each instance, students adopt an expert process for problem solving.   

Kaldhusdal often finds himself learning alongside his students as they tackle historical topics new to him—from the history of lynching to the development of public libraries to the role of Bruce Springsteen in helping to bring down the Berlin Wall. That gives him the opportunity to model another important process: being a lifelong learner. 

To plan a project in which students take on an authentic role, consider:

  • How do your learning goals relate to specific professions? Who uses the content and thinking skills of your subject area to investigate meaningful questions and seek solutions?

  • How can you connect with experts to share their thinking strategies with students? 

  • What products do experts produce? 

  • Which tools and technologies do they use? 

Aim for products with impact.

When Campbell launched the cold case project, he had no idea that students would eventually be recognized in the state capitol for their efforts or be interviewed by media from around the world. “You don’t know where the project will lead,” he says, “But by doing the project, you give your students opportunities.”

Those opportunities extend well beyond learning content. Campbell makes sure his students learn how to engage with experts and how to build their own networks. They practice communicating with audiences–not only at the end of projects, but throughout. 

Similarly, Kaldhusdal’s students have shared their work with audiences at the Smithsonian and beyond. That speaks to the quality of their products, which improve with multiple rounds of feedback and revision. 

Hearing these stories, I’m reminded of another teacher who challenged her students to put their solution into action. She asked them, “Are you talkers, or doers?” Real-world projects lead somewhere that matters. By sharing products with audiences, students have the chance to see their ideas reach the finish line. That might mean raising awareness, advocating for a solution, or taking action themselves. Through real-world learning, students make meaning–and make a difference. 

These questions will help you plan projects that will have an impact:

  • Who will benefit from the products or solutions that students create?

  • How will you help students reach the audience they want to influence?

  • How will you plan for meaningful feedback and revision to help students work toward excellence? 

In my work with teachers, I remind them that shifts toward more authentic learning can happen gradually. A good starting point is considering the “3 P’s” highlighted above: Is the PROBLEM authentic? Will students use the PROCESS of experts to investigate and create? Will the PRODUCT have real impact?  

At a time when AI is dominating discussions about education, the human connection that happens in real-world learning is more important than ever. 


Suzie Boss is an author, consultant, and project-based learning advocate. She has worked with  educators from around the globe who want to shift their practice toward more student-centered, authentic learning.

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