Project Based Learning: Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle

Project based learning allows students to learn through applying their knowledge and skills through engaging experiences. Projects can range from mini clay modeling activities to yearlong design challenges.

I was a student of a school structured around PBL, from my STEM classes to my humanities classes. I didn’t focus on the instructional benefits of PBL in comparison to the traditional classroom when I was a student. Being on the other end now, it’s really eye-opening to see how instructional methodology of a classroom has major implications on how students learn.

As a student, I’ve experienced both lecture based classes and project based learning classes. I definitely learned a lot in both types of environment. Lecture or guided instruction is important in content delivery (University lectures). Project based learning is important in creating student-centered and rigorous learning environments. I realized that the perfect PBL environment balances both guided instruction and projects.

You definitely have to give up a bit of control in the classroom. Giving up that control is worth it though. In the circuits unit, my students built parallel and series circuits to learn about how electricity is wired using a breadboard, LEDs, resistors, and a switch.

Then, they applied their knowledge of parallel and series circuits to create a vehicle that runs on hydrogen fuel cells and a solar panel. The goal was to create the fastest vehicle that runs on renewable energy as possible using VEX. In order to wire the hydrogen fuel cell to the motor of the car, they had to use their knowledge and understanding of circuits to determine how to wire the fuel cell in a series circuit.

The process was really fun and the project allowed my class to be student-centered and rigorous. Most important, they had fun learning and felt like engineers. The rigor came from applying their knowledge of circuits (which came from a mixture of guided instruction and also a past project) to a new project — a renewable energy vehicle.

The overall result was great. There was a lot of laughter, mostly friendly competition, and teamwork. Here’s a picture from it!