| Problem Based Learning |
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The defining characteristics of PBL are:
Accordingly, students are encouraged to take responsibility for their group and organize and direct the learning process with support from a tutor or instructor. Advocates of PBL claim it can be used to enhance content knowledge and foster the development of communication, problem-solving, and self-directed learning skill. PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING AND COGNITIVE LOAD Empirical studies have shown that active problem solving early in the learning process is a less effective instructional strategy than studying worked examples (Sweller and Cooper, 1985; Cooper and Sweller, 1987). Certainly active problem solving is useful as learners become more competent, and better able to deal with working memory limitations. But early in the learning process, learners may find it difficult to process a large amount of information in a short amount of time. The rigors of active problem solving can become an issue for novices. Sweller (1988) proposed Cognitive Load theory to explain how novices react to problem solving during the early stages of learning. Sweller suggests a gradual introduction of problems solving. He proposes other forms of learning early in the learning process (worked example, goal free problems, etc.); to later be replaced by completions problems, with the eventual goal of solving problems on their own (Sweller, Van Merrienboer, & Paas, 1998). Many forms of scaffolding have been implemented in PBL to reduce the cognitive load and support the learner in both problem solving and learning. The fading effect helps learners to slowly transit from studying examples to solving problems. THE PBL PROCESS PBL is typically done in small discussion groups of students accompanied by a faculty tutor or facilitator. A realistic problem is presented that often has incomplete information. In some implementations of PBL, students must engage in inquiry to get information about the problem; in others, the information is presented sequentially. The students discuss the problems, define what they know, generate hypotheses, derive learning goals and organize further work (such as literature and database research). Results are presented and discussed in the following session. The students then apply the results of their self-directed learning to solve the problem. A PBL cycle concludes with reflections on learning, problem solving, and collaboration. A structured whiteboard is used to help the learners keep track of their problem solving and learning. Although some predefined aspects of the problem are usually expected to be investigated, not all learning goals are strictly defined in advance. Problems should be ill-structured and should ideally be open to differing approaches and offer thematic sidelines. The teacher's role, as facilitator, is to guide the learning process rather than provide knowledge (Hmelo-Silver & Barrows, 2006). They facilitate the learning process by asking open-ended questions, largely Metacognitive . Feedback and reflection on the learning process and group dynamics are essential components of PBL. BACKGROUND The acquisition and structuring of knowledge in PBL is thought to work through the following Cognitive effects (Schmidt, 1993):
Sociocultural theories suggest that learning occurs as students collaboratively engage with concepts in meaningful problem solving. INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING Problem-based learning is often referred to as a form of Inquiry-based Learning (IBL), which describes an environment in which learning is driven by a process of enquiry owned by the student. REFERENCES
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