Project-Based Learning and EFL in cross-curricular lessons : teachers’ perceptions regarding implementation and challenges

Abstract

Project Based Learning (PBL) has been enhanced in education over the last decades. Including STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) among other cross-curricular lessons, PBL is being promoted as a way of learning by doing, something which is not new to educators. Nevertheless, when it comes to PBL in cross-curricular lessons in which English as a Foreign Language (EFL) is involved, it is a fairly unexplored field. The present exploratory study focuses on the perceptions that EFL and non-EFL teachers have regarding the implementation, challenges, and improvements of cross-curricular PBL lessons involving the English language in a non-bilingual school. Data was obtained by means of two qualitative research instruments: narrative frames, which were responded by 18 participants, and semi structured interviews with a selection of 8 of the previous 18 participants. The results of the study revealed that teachers understand PBL as a methodology that enriches the learning process as well as motivates their teaching practices. They also see some limitations when it comes to EFL in cross-curricular PBL lessons, but most importantly, they suggest that teachers need time to reflect on their pedagogical practices