
Revista multidisciplinaria
investigación Contemporánea ISSN-e: 2960-8015Vol. 4 -No. 2
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58995/redlic.rmic.v4.n2.a183 13 - 20
Acosta et al. The Eco-English Classroom: Using Project-Based Learning
04 - 2026
engage. The entry event is connected to a
series of activities that undergo ongoing
monitoring (Masek, A., & Yamin, S., 2010;
Boss, S., & Larmer, J., 2015) of their work
until they nish the project towards the
end of the period.
In Group 2, categories (3, 4, and 5)
– collaborative engagement, holistic
approach, and interconnected steps –
point to a common theme that pertains
to the PBL’s method and techniques in
teaching a lesson. In this Project, teachers
developed an interdisciplinary project
in which every component – objectives,
approach, implementation, and project
conceptualization – is connected to
the others. Unlike other EFL methods,
teachers often deliver lessons that are
not always connected to the next topic,
despite maintaining continuity in their
discussions and having a well-sequenced
list of grammar points. In PBL, teachers
develop a holistic plan in which the steps
in the method are seamlessly connected.
Teachers in this Project used a dierent
content – urban agriculture – which
deviated from the global themes in EFL
topics. In this context, teachers must
foster a collaborative environment so that
students learn English through urban
agriculture content, while simultaneously
developing a project to be showcased at
the end of a specic period. During the
FGDs, one teacher (Ibarra, Teacher 2) said,
‘The teaching-learning process is real,’ as
every component is connected. Through
eective classroom management, teachers
guided students through group-work
strategies, which eventually led to greater
learning autonomy.
In Figure 1, the categories in Group 3
that are thematically linked are diused
balance (category 7), privileging input (9),
outcome-oriented (8), and vocabulary-
driven (1). These categories highlight
the nuances between prioritizing input
(English vocabulary and grammar) over
project completion, the latter of which
reects students’ performance following
the PBL approach. Based on the categories
in Group 3, some teachers expressed
they dedicated more time in improving
students’ vocabulary using contents
about urban agriculture than the project;
however, many teachers shared a dierent
priority where they noticed they and the
students spent more time in fullling every
step of the project like plant propagation
and growing as it is the nal product of
the PBL lesson. Some teachers were more
outcome-oriented – focused on the project
–than on developing students’ language
learning; thus, there existed a nuanced
balance between achieving language
and project objectives. Also, teachers
diversied the learning environment
by going to the gardens created for the
PBL project, especially in the case of
teachers from Ibarra who have noticed
that students became more interested
and involved due to a realization that
learning English vocabulary can be based
on concrete objects, such as real seeds and
plants they can touch and feel. Just like in
any PBL-driven lesson in language classes,
teachers are confronted with balancing
accomplishing language objectives and
producing a project that reects students’
learning.
In relation to the categories constructed
in Group 3, teachers from Riobamba
explained in some FGD sessions that
they tried to ensure a balance when
implementing PBL through appropriate
assessment activities. One teacher from
Riobamba said, ‘To ensure language