Integrating web-delivered problem-based learning scenarios to the curriculum

This article reports on a small-scale research project (n=56) that investigated student educational gain. For the purposes of this study, gain is defined as an increase in the score that students obtain for pre/post intervention tests. Students received authentic exposure to the process via a web-delivered problem-based scenario. The students were randomly allocated to case and control groups. No statistically significant differences in educational gain were recorded between the two groups. However, the research highlights the requirement to fully integrate problem-based learning (PBL) work into a curriculum. It also confirms findings from other research that students engage well with PBL and enjoy the learning process using this methodology.

[1]  Michael J. Prince,et al.  Does Active Learning Work? A Review of the Research , 2004 .

[2]  M. Segers,et al.  Effects of problem-based learning: a meta- analysis , 2003 .

[3]  Joseph M. Le Doux,et al.  A Partnership for Problem-Based Learning. , 2005 .

[4]  H. Schmidt,et al.  Signs of Erosion: Reflections on Three Decades of Problem-based Learning at Maastricht University , 2005 .

[5]  Richard E. Clark,et al.  Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching , 2006 .

[6]  Noel Entwistle,et al.  Promoting deep learning through teaching and assessment: conceptual frameworks and educational contexts. , 2000 .

[7]  Galyna Kogut,et al.  Students’ perceptions of problem‐based learning , 2006 .

[8]  H. Schmidt.  Problem-based learning: An introduction , 1994 .

[9]  Patricia Carlson.  Teacher-Driven Design of Educational Software , 1998 .

[10]  G. W. Beers,et al.  The effect of teaching method on objective test scores: problem-based learning versus lecture. , 2005, The Journal of nursing education.

[11]  Mark Newman,et al.  A Pilot Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on the Effectiveness of Problem Based Learning. , 2003 .

[12]  Michael Hughes,et al.  Integration of ICT within a project-based learning environment , 2002 .

[13]  Terry M Stewart,et al.  Approaches to Training Practitioners in the Art and Science of Plant Disease Diagnosis. , 2006, Plant disease.

[14]  Heather Fry,et al.  A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education : Enhancing Academic Practice , 1999 .

[15]  Thomas M. Duffy,et al.  Problem Based Learning: An instructional model and its constructivist framework , 1995 .

[16]  George H. Watson,et al.  Using Technology To Promote Success in PBL Courses , 2002 .

[17]  H. Fry,et al.  A Handbook for Teaching & Learning in Higher Education: Enhancing Academic Practice. Second Edition. , 2003 .

[18]  R. Hake.  Interactive-engagement versus traditional methods: A six-thousand-student survey of mechanics test data for introductory physics courses , 1998 .

[19]  David Boud,et al.  The Challenge of Problem Based Learning , 1991 .

[20]  L. Cohen,et al.  Research Methods in Education , 1980 .

[21]  Claire Howell Major,et al.  Assessing the Effectiveness of Problem-Based Learning in Higher Education: Lessons from the Literature , 2001 .