What kind of advanced planing do you think you would need to do before teaching a PBL unit? What kind(s) would you need and from whom?
To start, a teacher must start planning a PBL with a great deal of time in advance. The amount of prep-work for a PBL is very similar to that of a regular unit, however, it appears to offer a more enriching experience for students. In addition, a teacher must have goals in mind, perhaps by using a backward design in order to know what s/he wants the students to learn and how the students will be assessed. From there, the teacher has to carefully plan lessons and learning activities that will meet the learning objectives.
This time component is an important factor when deciding how and when the PBL activities will be carried out. Much of the PBL requires that students 'struggle' with a question or problem in an effort to find a solution. Knowing that students have varying learning abilities and needs, it's possible to predict exactly how much time will be need to complete each activity (though it can be roughly estimated). There needs to be some room for natural discussion and/or teachable moments as well as time for students to process what is being asked. They also should be given the time to reflect about what they've learned with others as well as independently.
The materials and resources (human and experiential) must be researched and gathered along the way. The teacher will need to collaborate with other professionals in their local community and beyond to gather relevant resources. This can be in the form of working with specialists in the building, networking with a colleague who may be familiar with the topic, making contact within the local community to see if experts can come and speak or perform demonstrations, or visiting a location for an interactive, real-world experience. Collaboration is essential and takes a great deal of time to effectively sift out resources that will be beneficial for students as they complete this unit.
A problem-based unit is far from spontaneous. It takes carefully, specific planning on behalf of the teacher. It seems like a lot of up-front work in preparation of the lesson, however, the students will do majority of the work in the long run.
Oh I totally agree- far from spontaneous. The trouble is that sometimes teachers want it to be or it turns into that and the unit falls flat. Then they abandon the process because it was unsuccessful. You've also mentioned the reflection component which is critical for both teacher and student to understand!
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