Who We Are

Dr. Sylvia C. Chard is Professor Emeritus of Early Childhood Education at the University of Alberta, Canada. Dr. Chard worked at the University of Alberta beginning in 1989, where she served for seven years as director of the laboratory school, the Child Study Centre, in the Department of Elementary Education. She taught at various levels in schools in England—from preschool through high school—and she completed her M.Ed. and Ph.D. at the University of Illinois. Dr. Chard spent more than twenty years traveling worldwide helping teachers and school systems implement project-based learning in the classroom. Each summer, she and her colleague, Lilian Katz, offered a four-day institute on the Project Approach at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Chard and Dr. Katz developed a group of international educators, known as the Project Approach Teacher Education Network (PATEN), discussed below, to help train future generations of teachers to successfully use project work.

Project Approach Teacher Educator Network (PATEN)

PATEN is a group of educators committed to and experienced in implementing the Project Approach with learners of all ages in a variety of settings. Our group members collaborate with educators worldwide by supporting and developing the work of Drs. Lilian Katz and Sylvia Chard. We offer general support and guidance, project feedback, and site visits. Many of our members also serve as consultants and provide more formal services, such as training workshops and in-services. We invite you to contact us and look forward to hearing from you.