Teaching Physics Using Problem Based Learning
- Publication Date: 19-06-2000
PBL is a method of teaching, that challenges students to learn by working co-operatively in groups to seek solutions to real world problems.
The problems in this resource are used to engage students curiosity and initiate learning the subject matter. PBL prepares students to think critically and analytically, and to find and use appropriate learning resources. PBL is an active, discovery-based approach to learning, in which students work together on cases and problems to learn the content of a course.Problem-based learning is a pedagogical strategy for posing significant, context specific, real world situations, and providing resources, guidance, and instruction to students as they develop content knowledge and problem-solving skills. The students collaborate to study the issues of a problem as they strive to create viable solutions.
There are a host of benefits of adopting group work in the physical sciences. From a purely teaching point of view, group work can promote peer learning in a more relaxed and collaborative atmosphere. Students also develop important skills employers look for, such as communication skills. From a pragmatic point of view, group work is beneficial to the physical sciences because it makes laboratory work more productive - with students making more of limited resources and being able to develop skills better by learning from each other. Finally, if group work is assessed the learning experience is greater and is also more manageable for the lecturer.Publisher: Physical Sciences Subject Centre
- Dr. Brian Bowe