Problem based Learning in Engineering and Science – Development of Facilitator

1. Problem based Learning in Engineering and Science – Development of Facilitator A Course given by: Xiangyun Du Department of Education, Learning and Philosophy Fibigerstraede 10, DK - 9220 Aalborg East Phone: + 45 99408353, e-mail: xiangyun@learning.aau.dk Lars Peter Jensen Department of Control Engineering Fredrik Bajers Vej 7C, DK - 9220 Aalborg East Phone: + 45 99408740, e-mail: lpj@es.aau.dk http://es.aau.dk/staff/lpj Associated Professors at Aalborg University

2. Wednesday, 27th of October 2010: Facilitation 9.00       Mini project: In a Danish brewery  there is too much noise emitted in the production hall, due to the bottles. Plan how to find the noise sources and find solutions. 9.45       Introduction to role play. Exercise: Role play of a supervising situation 12.00       Lunch 13.00       Facilitation skills and experience exchange 14.30 Intercultural Communication in a PBL Environment 15.15       Forming Peer groups and planning experiment 16.00       End of day two Supervision

3. Role-play • Six role plays illustrate supervising situations (meetings) • Imagine that your group is working on the project from this morning • The group members assign roles between themselves, so that the outlined situation in the role play occurs • Each role play lasts approximately 15 minutes • Each role play is commented by 4-5 observers Supervision

4. Lunch until 13.00 Supervision

5. Student centered learning Teach me… and I will forget ? Tell me and I will forget Show me and I will remember Involve me and I will understand Step back and I will act Chinese proverb Supervision

6. Carl Rogers on teaching at Harvard in 1951 • I have come to feel that the only learning which significantly influences behavior is self-discovered, self-appropriated learning. • It seems to me that anything that can be taught to another is relatively inconsequential, and has little or no significant influence on behavior. Supervision

7. The magic of self-directed learning Learning is the process of acquiring new behavior potential. It is an efective strategy to make the learner responsible for their own learning. This explains the succes of methods like project organized learning and Problem-based learning Supervision

8. Active involvement, discussing a topic is an effective educational strategy, for students as well as for teachers. Supervision

9. Teacher roles and PBL The teacher as: • Expert • Facilitator • Designing a stimulating environment for learning • Management of the learning process, including evaluation • Stimulates students to define their own learning goals and to direct their own learning process Supervision

10. Teacher roles byond teaching No need for transfer of information No need for direction of the learning process No need for external control and help that keeps the student in a dependent position Needed is the master Who knows when to step back And when to confront the student with the need to take resposiblity Supervision

11. Teaching styles How do you teach? Can give a metaphore? Supervision

12. Teaching styles Guidance Transfer Shaping After: Dennis Fox, 1983 Supervision

13. Forms of Supervision • Process supervision • Product supervision • Control Supervision • Laissez-faire Supervision Supervision

14. Forms of Supervision - 1 Process supervision: • Sees the project as a cognitive process • Facilitates co-operation in the group • Starts reflexive processes • Asks facilitating (reflexive) questions in stead of pointing out solutions Supervision

15. Forms of Supervision - 2 Product supervision: • Focus on theoretical knowledge • Focus on solutions, which are often given • Project report must be coherent • The product/construction (or part of) should be finished Supervision

16. Forms of Supervision - 3 Control Supervision: • The group is tested • Thinks on the exam • The project period is one long exam • Is interested in the knowledge of the individual student Supervision

17. Forms of Supervision - 4 Laissez-faire Supervision: • The students are left to themselves • Lack of engagement • General and occasional comments • Uses minimal time Supervision

18. Situated supervision • Where in the process • Where in the education • Type of projects and objectives • Type of students • Experienced? • Brilliant or poor students • Social competence Ability to read the situation …. Supervision

19. “supervisor ” project supervision “Students” Supervision http://meds.queensu.ca/medicine/pbl/pblhome.htm

20. Beginning of the project Progressing in the project Communication maps during a project Supervision

21. Forms of groups - 1 Supervision

22. Forms of groups - 2 Supervision

23. Characteristics for a well functioning group: • Common goal or objectives • Agreement about group norms, rules • The members ”play” all the necessary roles • All group members respect each other Supervision

24. Co-operation: group classification Supervision

25. Ideal Learning environment from the perspective of students – group work • Ideal group size: 3-4 people • Most important things that make group work function • Positive attitude • Constructive communication • Cooperation • Compromise • New perspectives Supervision

26. Students’ opinions on supervision Good Supervision: • Overview in chaos • Cut through in critical situations • Solutions are not presented by the supervisor • Ask facilitating questions • The project is not controlled by the supervisor but by the group itself • Supervisor is well prepared and well informed Supervision

27. Students’ opinions on supervision Poor Supervision: • Supervisor does not express opinions about affective questions • Supervisor does not give constructive feed back/criticism • Lack of interest in the project and/or the students • The supervisor has poor knowledge about the students’ work and work process • Supervisor takes ownership of the project and controls the students’ learning process Supervision

28. Learning environment from the perspective of students –supervision Functions of supervisors • Beginners of each project / the study program More direct inputs regarding how to the project work started and relevant technical knowledge • Later part of the project / education Structural comments, emergency support ‘In the first year, we had no idea what we can expect from them and how to communicate with them. So lots of problems coming out along the way. Now we know what we can do from our part. If we have specific problem we have to solve, we will tell him and be clear about what specific help we expect to get. We prepare something for him to read for comments.’ – student group Supervision

29. Learning environment from the perspective of students –supervision Expectation to supervisors • clear information about what can be expected • Technical knowledge • The art of teaching (more important) • Engagement, willingness to help • Accessibility • Mental support, especially in case of problems • Instruction of methods (how to learn) regarding how to solve the project and do the project rather than facts answers • Constructive communication – with clear knowledge about the expectation from both sides Supervision

30. Tasks of a supervisor • Before the semester start: • Prepare project proposals • Plan project courses • In the beginning of a project: • Help to find appropriate literature • Help to establish contacts with companies etc. • Discuss the potential of the project proposal with students • During the whole project period: • Give comments to both oral and written presentations/memos/working papers • Monitor the progress and professional level of group and individual students • At the end: • Prepare for the examination • Chair the examination Supervision

31. Tools for supervision • Contracts Supervision

32. Group contract – an example Supervision

33. Tools for supervision • Contracts • Students’ peer assessment Supervision

34. Students’ peer assessment • Students in the same group reviewing each other’s written material • Students in the same group giving mini- lectures for each other • Two groups acting as opponents for each other at seminars and exams Supervision

35. Tools for supervision • Contracts • Students’ peer assessment • Process analysis Supervision

36. Process analysis - content Supervision

37. Process analysis – example Supervision

38. Tools for supervision • Contracts • Students’ peer assessment • Process analysis • Facilitation Supervision

39. Facilitation • Summarize • Mirror students’ work • Ask open-ended questions using 6-W • Encourage students to keep a dynamic list of questions • Give feedback by rethinking aloud Supervision

40. Tools for supervision • Contracts • Students’ peer assessment • Process analysis • Facilitation • Questioning the team work Supervision

41. Questioning team work - 1 Put on the students’ agenda when starting the project: • level of ambitions • how much time to be used • how to share the work • meeting discipline • how to solve conflicts • social relations Supervision

42. Questioning team work - 2 During the project: • ask to the way the students organize the work and discuss the working process • ask to special project functions • discuss objectives for the organizational aspects • give individual consultations • feel the atmosphere - be present • let the students discuss • try to involve all the students Supervision

43. Project supervision - preparation The group (two days in advance) : • What have we accomplished (working papers) • What are we doing right now • Requested supervision • Agenda The supervisor : • Read the working papers • Reflect upon and formulate questions to structure, form and content • Prepare for input to requested supervision Supervision

44. Project supervision – meeting The group : • Chairs the meeting • Takes minutes • Presents the points of the agenda • All students participate in discussions The supervisor : • Facilitates the students’ own reflection by asking questions • Involves all students in discussions • Secures reflections on: • Contracts, working processes, progress, time schedule etc. Supervision

45. Project supervision – follow up The group : • Sends minutes of the meeting to the supervisor • Discusses and assesses the input from the supervisor • Revises working papers, time schedule etc. The supervisor : • Reads the minutes and replies • Follows up on requested tasks Supervision

46. Experimenting/sharing experiences with supervision/facilitation. In each Peer Group there is at least one who is going to supervise a student group in the autumn semester. The rest of the Peer Group should help him/her in the planning and assessment of one of the supervisors meetings with the student group. The supervisor selects a planned meeting soon. BEFORE the meeting the Peer Group gets together and discusses the meeting with the supervisor, and makes a plan for how he should supervise the students at the meeting. It will be an excellent chance to experiment by doing something differently than usual. Supervision

47. DURING the meeting the rest of the Peer Group acts as observers (this is legalized by the student group beforehand) and notes down what happens. AFTER the meeting the Peer Group gets together and the observers tell the supervisor about their observations and they all share the experience and reflect upon how to improve their own supervision. The experiment/discussions are documented in a small report (3-5 pages) telling what was planned, what actual happened and what is to be learned. The report is handed in to the lectures (XD, LPJ) in electronic form no later than the 10th of December. Supervision