PBL in Engineering and Science – Development of Supervisor Skills Session 1: PBL – Why? And What? Mona Dahms Dept. of Develoment and Planning

Session 1: PBL – Why? And What? 1)Why PBL? Competence profile 2)A short break 3)What is PBL? Concept mapping, incl. scouting ”Teaching teaching and understanding understanding” – a video film about learning Learning theories and PBL principles 4)Summing up on Why? And What? 2

Session 1: Learning outcomes After this session you should be able to Identify and discuss competences required by engineering graduate employers versus taught at universities Explain the learning theories underlying PBL (social constructivism; Kolb’s learning cycle; Dixon’s learning cycles; Wenger’s Communities of Practice) Classify the main categories of PBL principles and list at least three principles in each category 3

1. Why PBL? a)Competence profile

Competence profile of a new development engineer You are working in the research and development department of a large international engineering company. The Human Resources manager calls you – he is busy writing a job advertisement for a new development engineer for the company. He asks for your input to the advertisement in the form of keywords specifying required competences of your new colleague. Which keywords do you give to him? 5

Activities in this task Individually, write down the 3 – 5 most important key words, describing your new colleague (3 min) In groups of 2, discuss and write down the 5 most important key words (5 min) In groups of 4, write down the 5 most important key words (7 min) Please be prepared to provide key words in plenary (10 min) 6

Competence profile – summing up A few questions to reflect on: Q1: To which extent are the required competences taught at university? 7

Competences taught at universities and required by industry - Germany Ref: Becker,

Competence profile – summing up A few questions to reflect on: Q1: To which extent are the required competences taught at university? Q2: Which competences are the most important? 9

Important competences ranked by young German engineers Ref: Becker,

Competence profile – summing up A few questions to reflect on: Q1: To which extent are the required competences taught at university? Q2: Which competences are the most important? Q2: To which extent can the required competences be taught at university? 11

Danish Industry on Competences of Young Engineers 12

Survey among employers 2002 One respondent in the survey said: –“The ones [i.e. the candidates] coming from, for example, Aalborg University, go in and work in projects from the start.” Kandidat 2002, p

14 Is there a need for changes in engineering and science education?

15 Break 15 minutes

2. What is PBL? a)Concept mapping and scouting b)“Teaching teaching and understanding understanding” – a video film c)Learning theories and PBL Principles

What is PBL? Concept mapping For some of you this exercise will be dead easy because you have been students in AAU For others it will be more difficult because you will have to rely upon what you believe, have observed or been told Join hands and put together a concept map of what to you are the main characteristics of PBL 17

Concept mapping – an example Social dimension Content dimension Learning dimension Why What How Who When Where Concept map: cmap.ihmc.us 18

Tasks in this activity - 1 In groups of 5 - 6, place the poster sheet in the middel of the table Write the focus question, i.e. ”What is PBL?” Write the two main concepts, i.e. Problem(based) and Learning Add concepts (nouns) that come to mind Add relations = linking phrases between concepts, non-, uni- or bidirectional as the case may be Use the 6 question stubs What? Why? How? Where? When? and Who? to aid your thinking 19

Tasks in this activity - 2 If you feel uneasy about writing directly on the poster, use Post-It’s and later transfer the words from Post-It’s to the poster Scouting: Take time to walk around and see and listen to what happens in the other groups in the room – ask questions if necessary – and pick what you find useful and bring it back to your own group When finished, please place your poster on the wall You have 30 minutes for this exercise 20

Groups for the group exercise Gruppe 1Group 4 Dalia KaulakieneMartin Hundebøll Line Røseth KarlsenSøren Henrik Adam Kristian BohnstedtFang Wang Wei FanLorenza Di Pilla Alireza RezaniakolaeiMartin Leginus Giang Phuong NguyenPrateek Mathur Group 2Group 5 Michael MadsenQobad Shafiee Steffen NielsenChayapol Kamyod Sonia FuPil Seok Kwon Swati PrasadSimone Riis Quang Vinh DangAlexandru Tatomirescu Priscila de Brito Silva Group 3 Niels Terp Kjeldgaard Jørgensen Bente Nørgaard Huai Wang German Corrales Madueno Reza A. Kordkheili 21

It’s all about learning! The video film ”Teaching teaching and understanding understanding” lasts app. 20 min. It can be watched in three sessions on YouTube – simply by Googling the title Follow-up to the video film – comments and questions? 22

Learning theories and PBL principles The video film describes, among others, the fundamental learning theory underlying PBL: Social constructivism 23

Learning theories - 1 Based on a social constructivist perception of learning and teaching: Learning is the student’s individual process of constructing knowledge and meaning, based on information inputs from many different sources and in social interaction with others (peers, teachers, experts etc.) 24

Learning theories Social constructivism: Knowledge is constructed by the students in social interaction with others

Is this learning? 26 Yes, it’s actually true – you can get a degree by repeating everything the teacher says. The psychological mistake in learning: ” We pretend that there is co-incidence between what is being taught and what is being learned” (Ref: Knud Illeriis, 1998)

Learning as a circle – experiential learning 27 Test Generalisation Reflection Experience Ref: Kolb 1984 ”Learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through the trans- formation of ex- periences” (Kolb)

Learning as a spiral - experiential learning 28 Reflection Time forinonlearning 1. projekt3. projekt 2. process analysis 1. process analysis 3. process analysis Ref: Cowan projekt

From lower to higher order thinking skills Learning as a hierarchy – measuring learning Ref: Bloom 1956 Picture: ww2.odu.edu 29

Peer learning Peer learning takes place in the ‘zone of proximal development’ which is …. “the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more capable peers” (Vygotskij 1978) 30 Ref:

Learning as a double circle – individual and collective learning Ref: Kolb 1984; Dixon 1999 Collective learning is based on …. individual learning 31

Learning in a Community of Practice “Learning is a function of the activity, context, and culture in which it normally occurs, thus it is situated” ( Ref: Lave & Wenger 1991 ) 32 More on Wenger’s CoP theory here:

33 Collaborative learning in Communities of Practice Learning as: Legitimate peripheral participation in Communities of Practice

Learning Theories - 2 Based on a social constructivist perception of learning and teaching: Learning is the student’s individual process of constructing knowledge and meaning Teaching is the ”setting up of a situation from which a motivated learner cannot escape without having learned” (Cowan) – teaching is not (only) lecturing !!! 34

35 Is this teaching? With thanks to Karl Smith, UMN “Teaching does not mean transferring knowledge but creating opportunities for …producing and constructing it.” (Paulo Freire)

Paulo Freire ( ) “Education is a way of intervening in the world” Freirian Critical Pedagogy is similar to PBL in most aspects 36

Efficiency of teaching methods 5 % Lecture Reading Audiovisual Demonstration Discussion group Practice Teaching others Average retention 20 % 30 % 50 % 75 % 80 % 10 % Note the bottom one – this is peer teaching/learning! 37

PBL Learning Principles – 3 Dimensions  Cognitive dimension: Problem based Contextualised Action oriented Experience based (Project organised) Ref: de Graff and Kolmos

PBL Learning Principles – 3 Dimensions  Content dimension: Interdisciplinary Exemplary Theory – practice relation Critical Ref: de Graff and Kolmos

PBL Learning Principles – 3 Dimensions  Collaborative dimension: Participant directed Team organised Dialogic Democratic Ref: de Graff and Kolmos

What is PBL?  ”PBL reflects the way people learn in real life; they simply get on with solving the problems life puts before them with whatever resources are to hand.” (Biggs 2003, p. 232; emphasis added) 41

What is PBL? “…. problem-based learning helps students to see that learning and life take place in contexts, contexts that affect the kinds of solutions that are available and possible.” (Savin-Baden 2003; emphasis added) Ref: Savin-Baden, 2003; emphasis added 42

What is PBL? PBL is Student-Centred Learning where motivating and activating students is the prime concern. The point of departure for the learning process is an ill-structured real life problem Ref: de Graff and Kolmos

Conclusion – so - What is this PBL? Based on the learning theory and the fundamental learning principles PBL can be implemented in many different ways Thus, PBL is not a certain prescribed teaching and learning method There is no ‘right’ or ‘best’ PBL approach – each university has (to develop) its own PBL model In the next session you will learn about the Aalborg model of PBL 44

Summing up on Why? And What? – Any comments or questions 45