Many of the elements of PBL remind me of the better parts of Cooperative Learning. I really enjoy using teaching techniques in which there are many correct answers, and PBL seems to fit right in with that. It seems readily adaptable to web-based teaching contexts because the web itself is a great resource for information, and it can also be used to host different ways to present multiple solutions by multiple groups.
The only thing I don’t really like about PBL is the limited role of the facilitator. Although he/she isn’t supposed to state opinions or offer advice until the end, I think the learning process is much more effective if the facilitator can play “devil’s advocate” while students are immersed in diagnosing a certain problem. I think doing so prevents them from falling into a self-fulfilling prophecy with their solution to the problem at hand -- it not only forces them to consider other options, solutions, and opinions, but also forces them to really back-up their solution to the problem with solid support. I understand there is some power in letting groups go through the entire process with nothing more than probing, but I think that should be reserved for unique situations and that general teaching should allow instant “dissent” from an instructor.
We also have to remember that PBL is not perfect. I know I mention it a lot in my blog, but the essence of quality teaching is using multiple teaching strategies because no one strategy encompasses everything we know about how learning takes place. For the medical school students that were discussed in the readings, we have to remember that PBL was not the only teaching strategy in their medical school. It supplemented traditional instruction in a way that allowed students to not only use what they had learned, but gave them a way to expand their knowledge base.
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In my classroom the "limited role of the facilitator" seems like a dream. My students seem to be so “needy” when they are completing assignments. I try to teach them to become more independent and the older students are "a little", but the freshmen are not! This mixture of student levels and abilities make using an instructional strategy such as PBL very difficult.
ReplyDeleteKaren Hughes
Paul,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement about the role of the facilitator just as Karen H. stated also. My students certainly require more guidance than what seems to be allowed using the PBL method. I just think this method is most effective in higher education. We have younger students and the content we teach is not always easily structured to utilize the PBL method as outlined in the reading. Also, with PBL one of the tensions mentioned how students learn content in-depth rather than in-breadth; however when teaching high school I have found that there needs to be a balance in this area. In-depth is nice but our state places just as much emphasis on the amount of coverage as well. Thanks for sharing.
I'm gonna have to disagree with your statement about the limited role of the facilitator. I think PBL is the theory we've addressed so far that makes the learning experience the most personal for students. Often the teacher/facilitator can get in the way of actual learning taking place. I do agree with your statement about being able to play devil's advocate but sometimes we have to be careful to not play that role to such an extent that students never know if we are being serious about topics, etc.
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