In this article, I describe the evolution of a problem-based service learning project in an undergraduate Abnormal Psychology course. Students worked in teams on a semester-long project to locate and evaluate information and treatment for specific psychiatric disorders. As part of the project, each team selected relevant bibliographic materials,…

Self-regulated learning with authentic and complex problems requires that learners observe their own learning and use additional information when appropriate (e.g., hypertextual information in computer-supported learning environments). Research indicates that learners in problem-based environments often have difficulties using additional…

Presents perspectives from students and teachers about project work in mathematics. Presents a theoretical framework consisting of problem-centered studies, interdisciplinarity, participant-directed studies, and the exemplarity principle. Contrasts theoretical conceptions with practice. (MKR)

Describes problem-based learning at South Africa's University of Transkei (Unitra) medical school, including the curriculum's design and instructional strategies in use. Reports a survey of 20 faculty and 35 students studying to be medical doctors (MBChBs). Results indicated a majority of faculty and students agreed on the effectiveness of the…

This research looks at student experiences of learning in a clinical teaching situation. At the end of a course, students took part in a class that was led by a user of the health system, rather than their usual lecturer. We chose to study this class because we knew that it provided a very different learning experience for the students and…

Background: The literature on immersive virtual worlds and e-learning to date largely indicates that technology has led the pedagogy. Although rationales for implementing e-learning have included flexibility of provision and supporting diversity, none of these recommendations has helped to provide strong pedagogical location. Furthermore, there is…

In response to calls for more engaging and interactive pedagogy, we simultaneously implemented 4 rousing learning activities: peer-mentored learning, student reports of what was clear (or not) from a previous lecture, consult corners where student groups provided course-informed solutions to problem-based scenarios, and applied projects presented…

Reflective-thinking skills are important in problem-based learning environments as they help learners become deeply engaged in learning. The literature suggests several instructional-design factors (e.g., environment, teaching methods, scaffolding tools) that may prompt reflection in learners. However, it is unclear whether these factors differ…

Process-oriented learning designs are innovative learning activities that include a set of inter-related learning tasks and are generic (could be used across disciplines). An example includes a problem-solving process widely used in problem-based learning today. Most of the existing process-oriented learning designs are not documented, let alone…

The Project-Based Learning (PBL) approach enables the student to construct knowledge in his/her own way. Piaget, the founder of constructivism, saw the development of intelligence as a process involving the relationship between brain maturity and individual experience. The technology PBL (TPBL) approach confronts the student with a personal…

Instructional designs, embedding learning in meaningful contexts such as problem-based learning (PBL) are increasingly used for fostering expertise to prepare students for the demands of the future workplace. However, cognitive outcomes of these curricula in terms of expertise outcomes are not always conclusive. Based on the instructional…

Reports a study of motivation among 36 University of Hong Kong first-year students during their first exposure to problem-based learning, with data drawn from student journals, pre- and post-semester measures of learning-style preference, and course evaluations. Results indicate significant changes in learning-style preference, from…

Applied Projects is a program where every technology student engages in an intensive team project full time during the final academic semester. A wide range of enterprises provide the real-world problems that form the basis of student projects. This article describes the program and how Fleming College uses this program for applied research. To…

Many faculty members generally assume that their students understand the purposes of college learning and that they are aware of the assumptions about liberal education embedded in the program configurations designed to advance it. In fact, it may very well be that, as Jerry Graff (2003) has suggested, our students are "clueless" about how to…

Cross-cultural skills are a major criterion for success in the global business environment. For students pursuing careers in international business, this means learning to manage cultural difference on three levels: self, interpersonal, and organizational. This paper describes five related and synergistic exercises that give college students…