In problem-based learning (PBL), students working in collaborative groups learn by resolving complex, realistic problems under the guidance of faculty. There is some evidence of PBL effectiveness in medical school settings where it began, and there are numerous accounts of PBL implementation in various undergraduate contexts, replete with…

In this regular feature of "Educational Technology," Michael F. Shaughnessy and Susan M. Fulgham present their interview with Ryan Watkins, Associate Professor of Educational Technology at the George Washington University and the author of 10 books and more than 95 articles. In this interview, Watkins discusses the following topics:…

Information and communications technology (ICT) is affecting every part of our society. Education is no exception, but here the impact of ICT is fragmented at best. The purpose of this article is to conceptualize and develop the idea of the smart classroom that integrates emerging information technologies with advanced pedagogies. System…

When a course designed around cooperative, problem-centered instruction attracts learners with a wide range of experience in the topic, should learners be grouped heterogeneously or homogeneously in terms of their relative expertise? In this study, learners were randomly distributed between the two types of groups; learning gains, satisfaction,…

Interdisciplinary problem-based learning (PBL) aims to provide students with opportunities to develop the necessary skills to work with different health professionals in a collaborative manner. This discourse study examined the processes of collective knowledge construction in Japanese students in the tutorials. Analyses of video-recorded data…

For a child to learn through Problem-Solving in Serious games, the game scaffolding mechanism has to be effective. Scaffolding is based on the Vygotzkian Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) concept which refers to the distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as…

Project-based team competition is a well established instructional strategy with a sound constructivist rationale. However the implementation of this strategy in Higher-Education rarely includes socio-constructivist activities such as peer assessments, which have considerable advantages both for assessees and assessors. It seems that the logistics…

The kindergarten program at the study site transitioned from half day to full day, yet the curriculum was not updated to accommodate the full day schedule, or to include best practices. In order to prepare learners for their future in education, activities were implemented to determine how problem based learning can promote acquisition of the 21st…

In the STEM classroom, students can work in collaborative teams to build those essential skills needed for the 21st-century world. In project-based learning (PBL), teams of four to six students are often randomly selected to describe a realistic situation that may occur in today's workplace; this may be done by counting off in fours, fives,…

The purpose of this paper is to qualitatively examine the relationship between problem based learning, authentic assessment and the role of community in fostering learning in digital contexts. The authors used "Digital Moments" to create a meaningful learning environment and build the online class community. They then collaboratively…

This study investigated the effectiveness of virtual pair programming (VPP) on student performance and satisfaction in an introductory Java course. Students used online tools that integrated desktop sharing and real-time communication, and the metrics examined showed that VPP is an acceptable alternative to individual programming experience.…

The availability of technological tools is promoting a shift toward more student-centered online instruction. This article describes the implementation of a Problem-Based Learning (PBL) model and the technological tools used to meet the expectations of the model as well as the needs of the students. The end product is a hybrid course with eight…

As the US continues to strive toward building capacity for a workforce in STEM fields (NSF, 2006), educational organizations and researchers have constructed frameworks that focus on increasing competencies in creativity in order to achieve this goal (ISTE, 2007; Karoly & Panis, 2004; Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2007). Despite these…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate online problem-based learning (PBL) as a route to achieving sustainability education using sponsored projects. Design/methodology/approach: The Royal Academy of Engineering sponsored project at Manchester; to foster education in sustainability through inter-disciplinary problem-based approaches,…

When problem based learning occurs in a social context it is open to a common social behaviour, scrounging. In the animal behaviour literature, scroungers do not attempt to find resources themselves but rather exploit resources found by other group members (referred to as producers). We know from studies of animal behaviour (including humans) that…