Introduction to the Aalborg PBL model

Introduction to the Aalborg PBL model Thomas Ryberg, MA, PhD Professor mso, Dept. of Communication and Psychology e-Learning Lab – center for user driven innovation, learning and design Member of the PBL Academy Management Board

Quotes from first day’s plenary session • Education of the future: • Skills development along with knowledge • Critical Thinking, Innovation and Creativity embedded in our education system • Building global knowledge networks • Employability • I believe that PBL can be an important measure in achieving these!

Outline of presentation • Aalborg University – its culture and history (The Aalborg PBL model) - Introduction to the Aalborg PBL model • Introduction to e-learning lab and its scope in PBL and networked learning

Aalborg University (AAU) • Located in three campuses in Denmark (Northern Europe): Aalborg, Copenhagen, Esbjerg • Denmark – pop. 5.2 million people • App.14.000 students • 3400 Humanities • 4400 Social Sciences • 5800 Engineering, Science and Medicin • Established in 1974 and from the beginning based on Problem Oriented and Project Based Work (The Aalborg PBL Model)

The Aalborg PBL model • Problem Based Learning • Based on real-life problems • Project Organised Education • Project work supported by lectures and courses • Group Work • groups of four to six students • supervised by lecturers/professors • Interdisciplinary Studies • Integration of theory and practice • Focus on Learning to Learn and methodological skills • University Wide Model - Used in all faculties (with variations)

Theoretical Background of the Aalborg PBL model • Learning not transfer – students not passive receivers • Institutional learning often a curriculum of text and ‘existing knowledge’ students must memorize • Assessment a measure of how much knowledge the students have memorized – not their ability to produce new knowledge or to use their knowledge in real settings • AAU PBL model is different!

Theoretical Background of the Aalborg PBL model • Knowledge and learning is created by the students – not given to the students • Knowledge and learning should be about construction, and not re-construction of knowledge • Learning and knowledge construction is facilitated by collaboration (dialogue, critical reviews, coordinating efforts) • Learning is about producing new knowledge, solutions, theories and methods • Knowledge creation!

A bit of history and international context • A number of PBL universities and educations started to emerge in the 60-70’s • Maastricht University, The Netherlands • Linköping University, Sweden • McMaster University, Canada • Newcastle University, Australia • Roskilde University, Denmark (1972) • Aalborg University, Denmark (1974) • Particularly the McMaster University became an inspiration in relation to PBL in medical education • Similar thoughts among the universities, although uncertainty about the relations / inspirations • A particular Danish approach started to emerge in the 70s – combining problem and project based learning – was related to the social and cultural changes at that time PBL – No project PBL & Project

Cultural backdrop at that time • The development of the Danish ‘Reform Universities’ related to broader international social and cultural changes (e.g. the 1968 student rebellions) • Changing power relations between students and teachers (participant control) • A strong focus on ‘solving’ / addressing real life problems (e.g. Social inequality, Class or Gender difference) – and raising political consciousness (also within Computer Science and Engineering)

Theoretical inspirations • Sociology, Politics and Pedagogy • Oscar Negt (social theorist, critical theory) • Soziologische Phantasie und exemplarisches Lernen. Zur Theorie der Arbeiterbildung • Paulo Freire • Pedagogy of the Opressed (1970) • Knud Illeris • Problemorientering og deltagerstyring (problem orientation and particpant control) (1974) • Learning Theorists more broadly • Dewey, Kolb (experiental learning) • Piaget, Bruner (Constructivism) • Vygotsky, Lave, Wenger (socio-cultural theories of learning)

PBL in Denmark – and its cultural backdrop • PBL, Project based learning and group work has been adopted widely within the Danish educational system e.g. in primary schools • Aalborg University from the beginning had strong collaboration with local industries – regional focus on developing competence (education) • Students from PBL and project based universities are highly popular among industries and organisations in Denmark • Praised for their ability to engage in teams, working with problems, combining theory and practice • Fastest completion rates in Denmark (Down to 5.1 Years – (of 5.0)) • In general: Danish Educational System saturated by the ideas that: students are encouraged to speak up, organise themselves, work independently, disagree and discuss – often relations between teachers and students are more informal/ahierarchical than elsewhere • (encouraging personal growth, formation/culture (dannelse), democratic participation and citizenship)

Core principles (Aalborg PBL principles from folder) • Problem orientation: • Problems/wonderings appropriate to the study program serve as the basis for the learning process • Project organization: • The project stands as both the means through which the students address the problem and the primary means by which students achieve the articulated educational objectives • Integration of theory and practice: • Students are able to see how theories and empirical/practical knowledge interrelate. Facilitated by thematic framework, curriculum and supervisors

Core principles (Aalborg PBL principles from folder) • Participant direction: • Students define the problem and make key decisions relevant to the successful completion of their project work • Team-based approach: • A majority of students’ problem/ project work is conducted in groups of three or more students. • Collaboration and feedback: • Students use peer and supervisor critique to improve their work; and the skills of collaboration, feedback and reflection are an important outcome of the PBL model. • Source: Principles of Problem and Project Based Learning. The Aalborg PBL Model. 2010. Scott Barge, Harvard University: Available in DK/UK from: http://www.aau.dk/Om+AAU/AAU-model+PBL/

PBL as a change of identity and perspective • Easy to learn or memorise principles and concepts...more difficult to apply them in practice – which is why we discuss and practice! • Sometimes includes that one thinks radically different of one’s own role as a ‘teacher’ • In popularised versions ‘from sage on the stage to guide on the side’ • Maybe even a change of identity and a model that can be culturally challenging • Different power relations and tone • Accepting students can at times be more knowledgeable within some areas – and you can learn from them (while still being a more knowledgeable peer!)

PBL in practice

Problem Based Learning – the Process Literature Lectures Group Studies Tutorials Field work Experiments

Students’ use of time - lectures, courses and project work Project work : a major assignment within a given subject-related framework determined for each semester (thematic framework). (15 ECTS) Course work – 3 x 5 ECTS modules with an exam 50 % 50 %

Connection between courses and projects • Every semester is set within a ‘thematic framework’ e.g. ‘databases and embedded systems’, ‘regional tourism’, ‘ICT and learning for sustainable development’ • Thematic frameworks are broad, but also helps sharpen the focus of the students’ projects • Courses are developed and taught with reference to the theme of the semester • Some courses are ‘Project Courses’ – meant to support project work • Others are ‘Study Courses’ with own assessment and exam (for general knowledge and skills)

Typical components of project work • The thematic framework of the semester is presented • Students brainstorm on ideas for projects and groups are formed • Students produce an early problem formulation and synopsis– a supervisor assigned to the group. • They scan for theories, methods, cases etc. that will help them solve or answer the problem they have – or help them to describe and analyse the problem domain. • E.g. ”How does the integration of computers into the classroom affect learning?” – This problem is a very open ended question, that can be investigated in many different ways. • The students will have to:

Typical components of project work • Find a problem and case, identify methods on how to investigate the problem (purely theoretical, through interviews, video-observation and analysis, questionnaires, ethnographic observation etc.) • They discuss their methods, and why they investigate their problem in a particular manner • They identify theories or theoretical concepts that will help them understand their problem • They (often) conduct empirical investigations, that are analysed • All this is done in collaboration with the supervisor, who helps the students to identify relevant methods, theories etc.

Assessment of the students • Some courses have individual examinations – oral or written – small assignment 15 pages. • Some courses are relieved through the ”project examination” • The written product of the project work is a project-report on app. 100 pages. • Group exam: The students, teacher and censor critically discuss the project and the students are given an individual grade. An examination last app. 2-5 hours.

Work in many different ways and places

INTRODUCTION TO E-LEARNING LAB PBL and networked learning (e-learning)

E-Learning Lab – Center for User Driven, Innovation, Learning and Design • Research center in the Department of Communication and Psychology, Faculty of Humanities • App. 22 researchers (including PhD students) • International environment – PhD students from: India, Thailand, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Germany. • Research domains: Education, Health, e-governance, business • Research foci: • ICT, Networked Learning and collaboration • User Centered Design, Interaction Design and Human Computer Interaction • User Driven Innovation, Tools exploration and experiments • Practice studies • ICT for development (ICT4D)

Developing and building local capacity within the area of technology enhanced learning and networked learning • Developing technological infrastructure (open source) and capacity • Developing pedagogical practice e.g. more student centered learning, PBL ICT for Development • SUDESCA • VISCA • VOANET • ELAC • Asian University for Women Design Identity Negotiation Culture Open Source Technologies Learning PBL CSCL Education Socio-cultural learning theory Communities of Practice

Some examples of PhD project (some Erasmus Mundus) • AparnaPurushothaman (India): How women users can be empowered through learning to use internet - An Ethnographic Action research study done in state of Kerala • FarzanaAkhter (Bangladesh): ICT-enabled informal learning for rural area people in Bangladesh • NikornRongbutsri (Thailand): Mobile Learning for Higher Education in Active Learning and PBL Environments • Saifuddin Khalid (Bangladesh): ICT for education - motivating a rural village in Bangladesh using local “students of a technical education institute.” • Sandra Safwat (Egypt): Factors affecting Egyptian and Vietnamese students acceptance and usage of e-learning component of an MBA program designed in Northern Europe

New roles for technology in supporting PBL Changes in the educationaltechnology landscape

Social media or web 2.0 in education • Have become popular within educational technology • Realised through use of: Blogs, wikis, social bookmarking etc. • But many of the ideals are not new! • Loads of work on how to support the work of groups (also in a PBL-context) – but new challenges and opportunities for learning and group work

Changes in the educational technological landscape • From hierarchical structures based on courses and topics towards more student centred networks • From distribution to more horizontal patterns of exchange – peer-learning • From Learning Management Systems (LMS)  Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) • Encouraging exchange, sharing of knowledge and students’ production of knowledge and artefacts • Encouraging the production of personal portfolios – personal repositories

Sharing across different social constellations Homebase(s) – profile PLE Strength of tie Glued together by RSS, Widgets, ‘open standards’, open APIs – Streams of continuously evolving ‘data’ and ‘information’ that can be somewhat easily manipulated Own content Friends’ content Groups’ content Shared fields of interest – imagined communities Collectives’ content – aggregated other We all become entrance points into complex (overlapping) networks

“new” social constellations or aggregations Learner in the centre • Networks between people working collaboratively • Networks between people sharing a context • Networks between people sharing a field of interest • (Dalsgaard, 2006): http://www.eurodl.org/materials/contrib/2006/Christian_Dalsgaard.htm Let’s briefly explore some examples of this – there are however many other sites and mixes Picture taken from: (Andersson, 2008) http://terrya.edublogs.org/2008/03/17/networks-versus-groups-in-higher-education/

Flash activities • Cloudworks – clouds where anyone can add content, , tags, references, discuss etc. • Wikipedia • Twitter-streams e.g. #Occupy – stream where content and conversations are pulled together • MOOCs - Massive Open Online Courses

Challenge • ICT enables multiple interactions across levels of scale • New arenas for finding and contributing knowledge • Supporting learners in making sense of the bits and pieces • The group (not necessarily project group) as a unit is a locus for deeper discussions and interactions and for sustained interactions and knowledge development • But important to support the continuous traversing of scale

Introduction to the Aalborg PBL model