Data-driven problem based learning: enhancing problem based learning with learning analytics

Educational technology research and development - Problem based learning (PBL) supports the development of transversal skills and could underpin the training of a workforce competent to withstand...     

The effect of peer feedback for blogging on college students' reflective learning processes

Reflection is an important prerequisite to making meaning of new information, and to advance from surface to deep learning. Strategies such as journal writing and peer feedback have been found to promote reflection as well as deep thinking and learning. This study used an empirical design to investigate the interaction effects of peer feedback and blogging on college students' reflective thinking skills and their learning approaches. Forty-four first- and second-year undergraduate students participated in the study. Students kept blogs each week throughout a whole semester. Two journals were sampled at the beginning and end of the semester for each student. A repeated measure one-way ANOVA suggested that students' reflective thinking level increased significantly over time; however, peer feedback was found to negatively affect students' reflective thinking skills. The result of the study suggests more carefully designed uses in the future.     

Characterising the different blogging behaviours of students on an online distance learning course

Since the early years of the twenty‐first century there has been an increasing interest in using Web 2.0 technologies to support learning in Higher Education. However, previous research suggests that the integration of blogging into courses can be difficult and cites problems with issues such as student compliance. We adopt a learner‐centred perspective and explore students’ (rather than their educators’) understanding of how blogs and blogging can support distance learning in Higher Education. We report on a study of UK Open University (OU) students on an online distance learning Masters course, that has enabled us to determine the issues that are important to these bloggers, and we describe five ways in which they appropriated blogging to suit their individual needs. We discuss the importance of making blogging activities flexible so that students can blog to meet their own needs whilst still attending to the requirements of their course.     

Integrating assessment tasks in a problem‐based learning environment

The purpose of this study was to get more insight in the effects of written assessment tasks integrated in a problem‐based learning environment. Both the influence on students' performances and students' perceptions were investigated. Students' final exam results were used to find out whether students who make the assessment tasks do better than students who do not. Answers from questionnaires and semi‐structured interviews were used to discover the most important concerns in students' and teachers' perceptions of the assessment tasks. The results indicate that making the assessment tasks had positive influence on the students' overall performance. From the questionnaires and interviews it appears that both the students and the teachers see the benefits of the assessment tasks. It is concluded that small steps in the change of the assessment system can result in relatively big changes in students' learning and results.     

Factors affecting perceived learning of engineering students in problem based learning supported by business simulation

Although literature about problem based learning (PBL) is not scarce, there is little research on experiences about learning methodologies that combine PBL and the use of simulation tools. This lack of studies is even more notable in the case of engineering courses. The motivation for this study is to show how such a combination of PBL and simulation has been designed in a group work course for engineers and to analyze how the underlying factors of this methodology are related to perceived learning. This exploratory study focuses on how perceived enjoyment, interaction, collaborative learning, perceived satisfaction, and time dedicated to the course affect the learning perceived by the students in an engineer's degree course. The outcomes of this pilot study show that only three of these factors (satisfaction, time dedication, and collaborative learning) affect the students' perceived learning. Despite the high ratings obtained for interaction and perceived enjoyment, no significant relation between these factors and perceived learning was found. The reasons behind these findings are discussed.     

Academic and social integration and study progress in problem based learning

The present study explores the effects of problem-based learning (PBL) on social and academic integration and study progress. Three hundred and five first-year students from three different psychology curricula completed a questionnaire on social and academic integration. Effects of a full-fledged PBL environment were compared to (1) effects of a conventional lecture-based learning environment, and (2) effects of a learning environment that combined lectures and other methods aimed at activating students. Lisrel analyses show direct positive effects of the learning environment on study progress: students in PBL obtained more credits compared to students in more conventional curricula. Moreover, the levels of social and academic integration were also higher among students in the PBL curriculum. The links between integration and study progress were less straightforward. Formal social integration positively affected study progress, but informal academic integration was negatively related to study progress.     

Serious but fun,self-directed yet social: blogging as a form of lifelong learning

The article explores the role of digital media in supporting lifelong learning. In particular, it focuses on bloggers who write their blogs voluntarily in their own free time. The aim is to examine how lifelong learning—viewed as self-directed, nonformal learning and active participation that evolves from a desire for self-actualization—occurs in the processes of blogging. The data for this small-scale study were collected by qualitative email interviews. In all, 11 Finnish bloggers participated. The findings show that active participation, promoted and enabled by blogging, was actualized in both online and offline environments. It was embedded within six functions of their blogs that the bloggers mentioned: (1) learning and studying, (2) guidance and tutoring, (3) bringing new perspectives to public discussions, (4) applying expertise, (5) creating in one’s own space and at one’s own pace and (6) being part of a digital media culture. The findings indicate that blogging can promote nonformal, lifelong learning in many ways. Blogs and blogging constitute a learning environment that promotes active participation by making interesting, meaningful and enjoyable activities possible, and consequently the enthusiasm to actively learn and develop.     

Using multimedia to overcome the problems with problem based learning

Much of the literature on problem based learning (PBL) is concerned with efficacy or with guidelines on design or implementation. Relatively few articles focus on problems with problem based learning, and none that we could find provided suggestions as to how interactive multimedia might help alleviate those problems. In this article we begin with a review of problem based learning including a rationale for its use in the curriculum. Then we identify some of the problems inherent in designing and implementing problem based learning, and end the article with a discussion of how multimedia might be used to address some of those problems.     

Co-regulation and knowledge construction in an online synchronous problem based learning setting

Learning to monitor and regulate one’s learning in an academic setting is a task that all students must engage in. Learning in “group” situations requires both self- and co-regulation. This research examines a case study of a small group of medical student interactions during an on-line problem based learning activity (PBL) where students learn to co-regulate their performance as they construct their understanding of how best to communicate bad news to patients. This paper introduces an approach for analyzing the group discourse to understand how collective knowledge building facilitates co-regulation. A mixed method analysis was used to analyze the case study data. A qualitative data analysis of verbal interactions was conducted to examine co-regulatory episodes. Collective knowledge building was examined by analyzing the group discourse for indicators of co-regulatory processes. The study follows two quantitative analyses: a frequency count analysis of types of questions asked by facilitators and students; and a sequential pattern mining for patterns of co-occurrences of learners’ discourse and co-regulation.     

遗传学教学中问题教学的应用

阐述了遗传学教学中问题式教学法的应用、创设问题的原则以及实施问题式教学法的启示．     

Blended problem‐based learning for teacher education: lessons learnt

This paper explores case study research of the group process for teachers as learners in an Online Learning Module delivered in a blended problem‐based learning (PBL) environment. Blended learning, as the name suggests, consists of a blend of at least two pedagogical approaches: within the context of this research, blended learning is the integration of the PBL face‐to‐face learning in a classroom with an e‐learning environment. The 10‐week module was part of an accredited Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching for academic staff (lecturers, librarians, learning technology support staff) from a range of higher education institutions in the Republic of Ireland. This Postgraduate Diploma attracts academic staff keen to experience and implement a variety of pedagogical approaches within their own teaching. Over the four years of the module’s existence, there have been a wide variety of subject disciplines in higher education represented. This paper shares experiences and lessons learnt from the case study, and provides a set of recommendations for other teachers pursuing this form of blended PBL with students.     

A multimedia‐enhanced problem‐based learning experience in the Malaysian classroom

In this paper a multimedia project was incorporated into a problem‐based learning environment to examine how learning in multimedia could be enhanced through the use of problem‐based learning. Students in a second year course in the Faculty of Creative Multimedia (FCM) were assigned the problem‐based multimedia project, they worked in groups, solving the problem using the multimedia authoring process (MAP). This paper reports on the structuring of the student learning process, the impact of the problem‐based learning environment on student learning and the important skills such as creative and critical thinking, teamwork, communication, collaborative and problem‐solving skills that arose as the result of this intervention. In the process, a multimedia‐enhanced problem‐based learning (M‐PBL) model was created. The interrelationships between the teacher, students and technology in this learning mode were also established. A survey was conducted to assess the reactions and attitudes of the students towards this learning environment. The results obtained were positive and satisfactory.     

研究性学习的问题研究与对策

研究性学习的开展对于培养学生能力与探究精神是非常有益的。但是由于研究性学习在实施过程中受到各种因素的影响,其实施过程存在诸多问题。应积极寻求改善的对策,使研究性学习课程这一新生事物不断完善,不断走向成熟。     

Reconsidering usage of blogging in preservice teacher education courses

The purpose of this study was to examine preservice teachers' perceived benefits of instructional blogs, classroom community, course satisfaction, and learning. The data were obtained via surveys administered throughout Fall 2009. Fifty preservice teachers from two undergraduate courses participated in this study. Results indicate that students did not utilize the full benefits of blogging. Students mainly used blogs for information sharing, rather than discussion or reflection. Additionally, preservice teachers' course satisfaction and perceived learning were found to be related to their feeling a sense of learning community.     

微博公众人物的伦理责任探析

随着微博进一步深入生活,公众为进一步实现“言论自由”而欣喜的同时,也开始为“过度”自由而引起的传播伦理问题而担忧。微博公众人物作为社会道德的引领者,应该承担更多的社会责任,比如要更严格地遵循真实传播、理性评论、文明表达等传播学基本原则,谨慎行使言论自由权;还要成为公众的道德引导者,以实现自我价值与社会价值的统一。社会大众可以对微博公众人物的传播行为进行监督,并就其失范、失德行为进行批评及合法声讨。     

遗传算法在求解TSP问题上的应用

论述了遗传算法在编码表示和遗传算子等方面的应用情况,指出了常用编码方法的优点和缺点,并且结合TSP的运行实例详细分析了基本遗传算法对求解结果和求解效率的影响.简单说明了混合遗传算法在求解TSP问题中的应用并对遗传算法解决TSP问题的前景提出了展望.     

Web‐delivered,problem‐based learning in organisational behaviour: a new form of CAOS

Recent calls have been made for a fundamental reorientation in higher education from a curriculum that simply transmits information (learner as receiver) to one that encourages students actively to construct their own knowledge and practice using new skills and concepts (learner as constructor). In response, the Case Analysis in Organisational Situations (CAOS) assessment tool was developed for use in teaching organisational behaviour. It follows the principles of problem‐based learning and group work, using an unfolding case design. A pre‐test (n=365), immediate post‐test (n=323) and delayed post‐test (n=129) design was implemented to evaluate the effectiveness of this new learning tool. The assessment of student approaches to learning revealed that students were more likely to adopt a deep approach to learning at the end of CAOS than at the beginning. In general, the results show that CAOS is a useful web‐based tool that promotes learning in organisational behaviour. The benefits of CAOS and some suggested improvements to the existing CAOS format are discussed.     

Model of blogging structure for intercultural communication environments in higher education

It is often observed that most international students are less likely to express their opinions in class. The lack of communicative engagement has negative impacts on students' academic performance. The objective of this article was to explore a range of possible explanations for international students' lack of engagement in class discussions and to seek a way to model how an e-tool could be applied to make international students more comfortable communicating. The present study viewed that those students' communication problems are induced by the following multiple factors: a sense of belonging to a minority, cultural difference, and communication apprehension. Blogs were thus suggested to enhance those students' communication contexts. An ideal model of blogging interactions between students and teachers was theoretically proposed.