Experience It Yourself:
An Introduction to
Problem-Based Learning
George Watson Hal White ghw@udel.edu
halwhite@udel.edu
Institute for Transforming
Undergraduate Education
University of Delaware
Workshop for Animal Science Education Consortium
December 16-17, 2002

The Way It Was...
1973 2002 graphing calculators, laptops, gigabytes and gigahertz
Computation

The Way It Was...
1973 2002 e-mail, voice-mail, chatrooms,
FAX, pagers, cell phones instant messaging, wireless connectivity
Communication

The Way It Was...
1973 2002
Online Information: web catalogs, networked databases,
Britannica Online, online newspapers, course websites,
CMS
Collections

Problem-Based Learning and the Cs of Technology:
Computation and Calculation
Communication and Collaboration
Collections and Connections

Given the amazing advances in technology and the dramatic change in the firstyear experience,
Can we afford to continue teaching the way we were taught?

…the individuals learning the most in [teachercentered classrooms] are the professors. They have reserved for themselves the very conditions that promote learning: actively seeking new information, integrating it with what is known, organizing it in a meaningful way, and having a chance to explain it to others.
Huba and Freed, Learner-Centered Assessment on College Campuses:
Shifting the Focus from Teaching to Learning, 2000

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Knowledge is transmitted from professor to student.
Learner-Centered
Students construct knowledge through gathering and synthesizing information and integrating it with the general skills of inquiry, communication, critical thinking, and problem solving.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Students passively receive information.
Learner-Centered
Students are actively involved.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Emphasis is on acquisition of knowledge outside the context in which it will be used.
Learner-Centered
Emphasis is on using and communicating knowledge effectively to address enduring and emerging issues and problems in real-life contexts.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Instructor’s role is to be the primary information giver.
Learner-Centered
Instructor’s role is to coach and facilitate.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Emphasis is on right answers.
Learner-Centered
Emphasis is on generating better questions and learning from errors.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Focus is on a single discipline.
Learner-Centered
Approach is compatible with interdisciplinary investigation.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Culture is competitive and individualistic.
Learner-Centered
Culture is cooperative, collaborative, and supportive.

Comparison of Paradigms
Teacher-Centered
Only students are viewed as learners.
Learner-Centered
Instructors and students learn together.

High level of communication skills
Ability to define problems, gather and evaluate information, develop solutions
Team skills -- ability to work with others
Ability to use all of the above to address problems in a complex real-world setting
Quality Assurance in Undergraduate Education (1994) Wingspread Conference,
ECS, Boulder, CO.

Make research-based learning the standard.
Build inquiry-based learning throughout the four years.
Link communication skills and course work.
Use information technology effectively.
Cultivate a sense of community.
Boyer Commission Report

What is Problem-Based Learning?
PBL is an instructional method that challenges students to “learn to learn,” working cooperatively in groups to seek solutions to real world problems.
PBL prepares students to think critically and analytically, and to find and use appropriate learning resources.

“The principal idea behind PBL is that the starting point for learning should be a problem, a query, or a puzzle that the learner wishes to solve.”
Boud (1985)

What are the Common
Features of PBL?
Learning is initiated by a problem.
Problems are based on complex, real-world situations.
All information needed to solve problem is not initially given.
Students identify, find, and use appropriate resources.
Students work in permanent groups.

Students are presented with a problem. They organize ideas and previous knowledge.
Students pose questions, defining what they know and do not know.
Assign responsibility for questions, discuss resources.
Reconvene, explore newly learned information, refine questions.

The Problem-Based Learning Cycle
Overview
(Assessment)
Problem, Project, or Assignment
Mini-lecture
Whole Class
Discussion
Group
Discussion
Preparation of
Group “Product”
Research
Group Discussion

Outcomes?
Moving away from:
Are students getting the right answer?
Huba and Freed, Learner-Centered Assessment on College Campuses:
Shifting the Focus from Teaching to Learning, 2000

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Can students demonstrate the qualities that we value in educated persons, the qualities we expect of college graduates?

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Can students gather and evaluate new information, think critically, reason effectively, and solve problems?

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Can [students] communicate clearly, drawing upon evidence to provide a basis for argumentation?

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Do [students’] decisions and judgments reflect understanding of universal truths[/concepts] in the humanities and arts [etc.]?

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Can [students] work respectfully and productively with others?

Outcomes?
Moving to:
Do [students] have self-regulating qualities like persistence and time management that will help them reach long-term goals?

A. PBL challenges students to learn to learn.
B. Learning is initiated by a problem.
C. Student-centered work in permanent groups.

“The principal idea behind PBL is that the starting point for learning should be a problem, a query, or a puzzle that the learner wishes to solve.”
Boud (1985)

A. PBL challenges students to learn to learn.
B. Learning is initiated by a problem.
C. Student-centered work in permanent groups.
Think/ pair/ share

Forming Groups
Homogeneous vs. Heterogeneous
“Homogeneous”
Groups
Your Class
Courtesy of Hal White
“Heterogeneous”
Groups

What Aspects of Heterogeneity are Important for You?

If you know you want to form heterogeneous groups, but don’t know critical information about your students, what can you do?
Let the students help you.

Forming Heterogeneous Groups
Without Prior Information
• If you are in Animal Nutrition, add 25
• If you are in Animal Physiology, add 50
• If you are in Agricultural Management, add 75
• If you are in none of the above, add 100
• If you are Male, add 100
• If you are Female, add 200
• Sum the digits of your Social Security Number
• Sum the seven digits of your office Phone Number
• GRAND TOTAL (Your Number)
When you have calculated Your Number, line up in numerical order.
100
-
43
31
199
-
-
25
-

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Chickens You Can’t Count on
Courtesy of Alberta Canada Poultry Conservation Program 'Rare Breed' Collection www.agric.gov.ab.ca/images/livestock/aprc/rarebreed_scwl.jp

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 1 - Hens rescued from the pot.
• If you were Prof. Maw, what could you conclude from the information provided?
• What questions would you have?
• How would you figure out the problem with the hens/eggs?

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 2 - What color is egg white?

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 2 - What color is egg white?
Predict what happened when Prof. Maw mated the F
1 siblings and incubated their eggs without injecting FMN.

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 3 Fluorescent “egg”citement
Fl u or es ce nc e
Mutant albumen
Normal albumen
Squirts of riboflavin solution

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 3 Fluorescent “egg”citement
Fl u or es ce nc e
Mutant albumen
Normal albumen
What are the implications of this experiment?
Squirts of riboflavin solution

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 4 – Burning Chicken Fat

PBL: Experience It Yourself
Stage 4 – Burning Chicken Fat
How might riboflavin deficiency lead to embryonic death?

Compelling Features of PBL for New Adapters
Models itself on how students learn.
With information overload, prepares students to be life-long learners.
More realistic curriculum prepares students for world outside the classroom.
Ensures more up-to-date materials, content.
Generates enthusiasm among faculty.
Boud and Feletti, 1998

Reflections and Questions