An instructional coach argues that STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) programming combined with problem-based learning can offer rich academic experiences--and not just in science classrooms. He outlines relevant problem-based lesson ideas, and discusses ways school leaders can better support instructional practices…

Most teachers try to avoid having students experience uncertainty in their schoolwork. But if we want to prepare students to tackle complex problems (and the uncertainty that accompanies such problems), we must give them learning experiences that involve feeling unsure and sometimes even confused. Beghetto presents five strategies that help…

How can the best of mathematical problem-based learning be applied toward literature classes? Daniel Sussman, an English teacher at Moorestown Friends School in New Jersey, discusses how he uses problem solving tactics to encourage close, critical reading of fiction texts in his Jewish literature and poetry classes. He explores the challenges of…

Elementary students at the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, Pennsylvania, don't just learn knowledge and skills; they put it to work. The school's Innovation Lab for grades K-4 offers students hands-on opportunities to use design thinking to solve problems. In this article, two of the school's educators describe how 2nd graders used design…