Integrating Problem-Based Learning and Technology in Education

1. Integrating Problem-Based Learning and Technology in Education George Watsonghw@udel.edu with contributions from Deborah Allen, Barbara DuchSusan Groh, and Hal White Institute for TransformingUndergraduate Education University of Delaware PBL2004, Cancunwww.udel.edu/pbl/PBL2004

3. 2004 The Way It Was... 1973 scientific calculators, graphing calculators, laptops, handheld PCs, PDAs tablet PCs, gigabytes and gigahertz, ubiquitous computing Computation

4. 2004 The Way It Was... 1973 e-mail, voice-mail, chatrooms, FAX, pagers, cell phones,text messaging, instant messaging, blogging, wireless connectivity Communication

5. 2004 The Way It Was... 1973 Online Information: web catalogs, networked databases, Britannica Online, online newspapers, course websites, CMS, LMS Collections

6. Education and the Cs of Technology: • Computation and Calculation • Communication and Collaboration • Collections and Connections Marisa Martín: Collaborative, Constructivist, and Contextual

7. An important question: Given the amazing advances in technology and the dramatic change in the environment of our students, Can we afford to continue teaching the way we were taught?

8. IntegratingInformation Technologyand PBL

9. Active Learning Objectives Courses should: • Be student-centered and encourage students to “learn to learn.” • Provide opportunities to think critically and to analyze and solve problems. • Assist students in developing skills in gathering and evaluating information. • Provide experience working cooperatively in teams and small groups. • Help students acquire versatile and effective communication skills. • Offer a variety of learning experiences. • Apply technology effectively where it will enhance learning.

10. Information Technology Objectives Students should: • engage in electronic collaboration. • use and create structured electronic documents. • do technology-enhanced presentations. • use appropriate electronic tools for research and evaluation. • use spreadsheets and databases to manage information. • use electronic tools for analyzing quantitative and qualitative data. • identify major legal, ethical, and security issues in information technology. • have a working knowledge of IT platforms. Adapted from Technology Across the Curriculum, George Mason U.

11. Overlap of Active-Learning Objectives and Instructional Technology Objectives

12. Overlap of Active-Learning Objectives and Instructional Technology Objectives

13. Overlap of Active-Learning Objectives and Instructional Technology Objectives

14. www.physics.udel.edu/~watson

15. Organizingthe Course Organizingthe Course Utilizing Online Resources

16. Organizing the Course Web Sites and Web Pages Syllabus Syllabus Groups Student Reports and Projects

17. Organizing the Syllabus Syllabus Introduction to PBL Group facilitation and support Forms for assessment

18. Introduction to PBL

19. Group facilitation and support

20. Forms for assessment

21. Examples of supporting information that can be linked from an online syllabus: • Instructor’s instructional philosophy • Detailed course objectives (both content and process) • General education curriculum goals • Motivation and description of PBL • Problem solving process and strategies • Roles and responsibilities of students, peer tutors, and instructor • List of frequently asked questions about PBL and working in groups • Forms for assessment of individual performance in groups • Some thoughts on grading • Anonymous suggestion box and responses to suggestions • Academic Services Center • Policies on academic dishonesty and responsible computing

22. Organizing the Course Web Sites and Web Pages Syllabus Groups Groups Student Reports and Projects

23. Organizing Groups Groups Identity: Rosters, photos, addresses Vehicles for communication Vehicles for collaboration

25. Organizing Groups Groups Student to student Student to professor Professor to group Vehicles for communication Student to group Professor to student

26. Organizing Groups Groups bulletin boards, newsgroups Group to group Egroups.com chatrooms, filesharing, scheduling meetings Vehicles for collaboration CMS: WebCT controlled discussion forums, collaborative space, whiteboarding Group to professor

27. Organizingthe Course Utilizing Online Resources Utilizing Online Resources

28. Utilizing Online Resources Web Sites and Web Pages Ingredients for writing problems Inspiration for designing problems Information for solving problems

29. Ingredients for writing problems

30. Utilizing Online Resources Web Sites and Web Pages Ingredients for writing problems Creating images with scanners, digital cameras Background facts from networked databases Borrowing images from other sites

31. Web Sites and Web Pages Utilizing Online Resources Online regional newspapers for local perspective International newspapers for global view Inspiration for designing problems Quack websites for “raw” material Film and TV sites for scripts and characters

32. Utilizing Online Resources Web Sites and Web Pages Old thinking: The web is full of misinformation and biased representation Stay away! New thinking: Engage and develop critical thinking skills. The Internet Challenge! Evaluating online resources critically Information for solving problems Executing web searches effectively

33. Computer Simulations • A wide variety of educational games exist that represent a PBL approach to learning <www.legacyinteractive.com> : • emergency room www.trauma.org • virtual hospital www.vh.org • archaeological dig dig.anthro.niu.edu • halls of justice www.objection.com • Interactive Java applets and Flash animations are also an excellent way to bring the power of technology to the PBL classroom.

34. As initially presented to the students

35. Features of the Circuit Simulator The current version provides a prototyping workspace drag-and-drop selection of resistors and batteries multimeters that can be configured to display current and/or voltage for each circuit element wire cutters and wire to complete and reconfigure circuits to carry out simulated experiments. a written and audio introduction to its use.

36. Running a circuit simulation…

37. Concept Mapping Software www.inspiration.com

38. Trends and Directionsin PBL and Technology

39. Facilities for PBL

40. Collaborative workspace Flexible furniture in PBL classroom

42. www.udel.edu/pbl/wireless/

45. Dissemination of PBL Materials

46. PBL Clearinghouse An online database of PBL articles and problems. All material is peer-reviewed by PBL practitioners for content and pedagogy. All problems are supported by learning objectives and resources, teaching and assessment notes. Holdings are searchable by author, discipline, keywords, or full text. Fully electronic submission, review, and publication cycle. Controlled access by free user subscription, students excluded.

47. www.udel.edu/pblc/

50. PBL Clearinghouse Currently there are ~7000 registered users and 70 PBL problems. Of the problems available, more than half are in physics, chemistry, and biology, but the number in other disciplines is growing steadily. We are very interested in publishing adaptations of problems to other cultural/geographical contexts. www.udel.edu/pblc