User:Smitty//articlecritiques//EXPLORING PROBLEM BASED LEARNING

EXPLORING PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING IN THE CONTEXT OF HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE: DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES

Brief Summary of Article

The research of Karen Goodnough and Marie Cashion grew from their acceptance of studies done by the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1993 and 1998 and the National Research Council in 1996 which concluded that science education in America is in need of drastic reform. Goodnough and Cashion were interested in discovering how problem-based learning (PBL), a forerunner of inquiry-based learning which was developed in medical schools, could best be utilized in assisting educators to improve science education. Their belief that necessary reforms in education must have the support of teachers to succeed influenced the design of their research. Goodnough and Cashion’s (2006) research sought to discover the obstacles which teachers would face who attempted to adopt new learning approaches such as PBL. Particularly they sought to understand the concerns a teacher would have as they implemented the PBL strategy in their classroom (p. 281). The subjects of this research were the twenty-six, twelfth grade students who comprised a high school biology class taught by Deidre a teacher with four years of secondary education experience. This research was principally concerned with the teacher and her acceptance of and implementation of a PBL curriculum in her biology classroom. This research was conducted through the utilization of an inquiry group made up of the classroom teacher and the authors of the article and the high school biology students (p. 281).

The researchers were interested primarily in the attitudes and procedures which the classroom teacher exhibited while implementing the new inquiry-based strategies. The design of the research used the concerns-based adoptions model or CBAM in which seven specific stages of concern are identified in individuals as they utilize new and innovative approaches. The research design also included eight typical behaviors which the researchers called “levels of use” (Goodnough &amp; Cashion, 2006 p. 282) to determine what actions an individual omits or accomplishes while they are involved in changing their previous behaviors. Both the stages of concern and levels of use proved very helpful in interpreting Deidre’s feelings and behavior as she adopted PBL in her classroom throughout the study. Value of the Article to the Field of Educational Planning The greatest value which this specific article offers the field of educational planning is its use of the “concerns-based adoptions model or CBAM” (Goodnough &amp; Cashion, 2006 p. 281) to demonstrate how the teacher who is implementing the change in curriculum feels throughout the process as well as “levels of use [to] identify ‘what a teacher is doing or not doing in relation to the innovation’” (p. 282). This article is also helpful in showing that the teacher’s willingness and ability to shift her teaching methodology from more traditional approaches to inquiry-based approaches is not the only variable to be considered in determining success. Student acceptance or rejection of the new method must also be taken into account by reformers, especially when the change is fairly dramatic and introduced late in the student’s academic career.

Value of the Article to My Development as an Educator

The personal value which this article offers my development as an educator is bound to the identification which I feel with the classroom teacher Deidre. Her dilemma in being drawn beyond her own “comfort zone” (Goodnough &amp; Cashion, 2006 p. 289) in implementing PBL is understandable and familiar. One very practical issue is Deidre’s difficulty with “the use of group assessment” (p. 288). Group assessment was also a major obstacle for the best students in Deidre’s class who were competing for academic scholarships to college. Goodnough and Cashion make the statement that: This study provides evidence of the need for teachers to create learning opportunities in science that will cater to many learning styles and support learning through a variety of multiple intelligences. Students have the ability to engage and develop a range of abilities, skills, and dispositions within a problem-based learning context. This is especially important if educators are concerned with helping all students develop high levels of scientific literacy (p. 291).

This statement raises an important question in one’s mind. Is it possible for every student to develop a high-level of scientific literacy? According to the multiple intelligences theory some student intelligences’ are more aligned with developing scientific literacy than others. Are educators required to assist students in maximizing their natural intelligence or must we endeavor to maximize all intelligences in all students?

 Ideas for New Research Relative to Educational Planning Generated by This Article

Goodnough and Cashion (2006) suggest that future research should investigate answering questions such as: Is PBL applicable for use with other disciplines? What age limitations, if any, should be placed on the use of PBL? What PBL models for K–12 education best encourage learning? Are there professional development approaches that help teachers who adopt PBL methods? What levels of learning does PBL stimulate? These and other questions will provide a good starting point for future research (pp. 291-292). Another possible area for research generated by this article is whether and how inquiry-based learning methods can be studied piecemeal because “the incompatibility of innovations with existing practice is often an important factor inhibiting their institutionalization” (p. 292). In sum, future research needs to focus on how one convinces current teachers that investing the time and effort to convert their more traditional methods and practices to inquiry-based approaches is worthwhile.