My PBL rant for this week

I'll admit that I was immediately intrigued by the potential for encouraging problem-solving strategies in learners when I approached my first instructional design project, intuitively thinking that the approach led to more depth and breadth in learners. After all, in my own experience with problem solving, learning was deeper when I was required to identify the problem, think of a solution, test my solution (and then make revisions when my idea was less than satisfactory) and then present my results. It just made sense to me that, when challenged with having to look closely at a problem and then creatively and deductively develop a solution.

Indeed, in enumerating the ten key elements of PBL, John Barell provides a succinct rationale for why problem-solving strategies create more depth and breadth in learning objectives. Barell said those elements are real-world problems, choices about content, objectives reflecting the highest of intellectual challenges, experiences in small-group collaborations, feedback (from cohorts and instructors), revisions, modifications and elaboration on findings, engagement in planning, obtaining pre-, formative and summative assessment information, "clear and easy-to-follow curricular structure centered on authentic problems and inquiry," and shared control of decision making as well as instruction and learning. With those elements, it's evident how problem solving goes well beyond a teacher merely lecturing and explaining.

PBL is not without its critics, however, and Colliver (2000), in a review of research conducted between 1992 and 1998 on the effectiveness of PBL on outcomes, concluded that the evidence did not support the idea that PBL methods were more advantageous than traditional teaching methods. However, in a later review of the literature, Hmelo-silver (2004) reached a different conclusion regarding the research but cautioned, "[M]uch of the research has been restricted to higher education, predominantly in medical schools."

Although PBL may be a "flavor of the month" (which is all too common in education), it is apparent to me that it will continue to find support from both educators and students. In fact, the idea of the effectiveness of PBL has been around since at least Dewey who, by his own admission, recognized its effectiveness in the tradition of apprenticeship.

As far as my own prejudice regarding the effectiveness of problem-solving strategies, I believe it not just demands critical thinking skills but is complex (RE Barells elements) in a way that standard, flat pedagogy is not.