Looking at the Problem-Based Learning and how it works, I can agree that this method can easily make the transition from the regular classroom to the internet classroom. I think that a lot of the meetings between the students and the problems they are going to have to solve could easily be adapted to use online mediums, such as Elluminate and Skype. From initially reading about PBL, I agree with pre-testing students' knowledge to see where they stand with the material. This would allow for me to be able to differentiate with more in depth instruction. The PBL model seems to require even more planning on the teacher's side along with more student collaboration. Because of the emphasis on interdisciplinary instruction, the planning could be distributed among teachers resulting in more intricate problems that are required for this model to work. One major barrier that I recognize as most important is Hung's point about breadth versus depth of the curriculum. This is one barrier that I don't believe you can overcome while using PBL correctly.
I would not use PBL in my classroom as a 9-12 social studies teacher because I can not sacrifice breadth of the curriculum for extreme depth. This is because of what is required of me to teach due to the NCSCOS for world history, civics, and US history. The curriculum standards do not let me go into depth on issues as the PBL requires. However, PBL may be more suited to social studies electives because of fewer time and curriculum restraints. For instance, in my Law and Justice electives, I would be able to alter my research assignments to be more collaborative and specific problem based. Unless I see myself teaching at the university level, I feel that this is a method that is much more suited for math or science classes. Collegiate level courses would be perfect for PBL because of the flexibility and depth of these courses.
There are plenty of different web-based tools to incorporate PBL in distance education, specifically online meeting places such as Elluminate, Skype, Google Docs, and/or Wiki space pages. By using Google Docs and Wiki space places, content can be modified by various people easily and conveniently.
You make good points about teacher expectations and lack of depth in most curriculums today (in public education). However, could you assign PBL projects that are started in class - but the bulk of the work would be on students' own time? Do you give them much homework already? Or could this be their homework -- especially by using collaborative online tools??
ReplyDeleteNicholas,
ReplyDeleteI think that pre-testing students would be a useful form of assessments before designing the problem based learning assignment. This can help the facilitator understand what information the students need more knowledge through research and problem solving.
It is unfortunate that the curriculum standards have restricted teachers to focusing on the content that is testing within the content area. However, that is the nature of present day education. We should try to incorporate some different teaching strategies and models like problem based learning even if it is just once a semester or nine weeks.
I agree that several science classes would be well suited for problem based learning. College level students do have more experience with different disciplines, but we also need to expose this type of learning probably starting as early as middle and/or high school.
I luck out with my curriculum - because I have a SCOS OBJ that states
ReplyDelete1.03 Interact in group activities and/or seminars in which the student...
3.02 Continue to explore and analyze the use of the problem-solution process by...
So the problem/based scenario works well in my 8th grade LA classroom. I've also liked how the PBL project you read about in my Blog exposes my students to nonfiction reading (the greatest area of needed in young readers). I think I could change how I've been doing it and make it a more cooperative learning environment. But you know what scares me about that? Is loosing the rigor of the project.
You're right in the fact that PBL does take time - and its an eye opening statement for me to hear that standardized testing is structuring your time to the level it has in your classroom.
In regards to Law and Justice class - I could see you easily proposing a problem (a case scenerio) and asking them to apply law and ethics to sovle or even find the defendant guilty/not guilty. I had a 11th grade English teacher pose a similar scenario with the book The Scarlet Letter. The problem she proposed was that Hester Pryne was innocent - and therefore I (as Public Defender) had to prove her innocence in a mock class trial. It was so much fun - and to this day I remember things about the novel that most readers probably don't because I had to know the details to argue my case.