Saturday, April 11, 2009
PBL Article
Oh, the PBL article. I have some pretty mixed feelings about it, I guess. I think the concept of PBL is fabulous. I think it is really an effective way to provoke original thought, creativity, teamwork, and real problem-solving skills that will be useful both academically and socially later in life. The particular PBL described in the article didn't seem to be quite as inspiring or engaging as some of the others I've read about. I agree, it felt a bit like teaching to the test. Also, I'm not exactly sure that the skills or ideas students are deriving from this activity are terribly useful for later in life. It seems they spent an awful lot of time figuring out HOW to take the test and statistics of the test, but are these really useful skills? I'm not so sure. Again the other part of me is really excited that these kids worked together for a greater goal and were inspired to really learn, I'm just not sure what they were learning was so worthwhile or educationally beneficial beyond the the world of standardized testing.
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"Again the other part of me is really excited that these kids worked together for a greater goal and were inspired to really learn, I'm just not sure what they were learning was so worthwhile or educationally beneficial beyond the the world of standardized testing." I think if you decide to use PBL in your classroom, you could shape it to your student's experiences and lives based on what you know about them. I think PBL works better when it presents something they can relate to. And I too disagree with the whole concept of teaching to the test, no matter how it is done. In the end, the students never really learn anything, so perhaps PBL can be used solely to assess the students learning rather than a test after the PBL.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what both of you are saying. The PBL in the reading definitely was not as engaging or helpful as some of the other ones we have heard about. And I like the idea that you have, Sara, about how perhaps in a situation like that PBL could be used to assess the students rather than having a test following. I think that seems like a really good idea because it might make the students feel that they don't have to worry so much about learning the right test answers and remembering them. They can just feel free to work hard on the problem at hand.
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