“I Know This is Supposed to be More Like the Real World, But . . .”: Student Perceptions of a PBL Implementation in an Undergraduate Materials Science Course

Abstract

This qualitative case study examines the initial implementation of a problem-based version of an undergraduate course in materials science for the purpose of identifying areas of improvement to the curriculum prior to a planned second implementation. The course was designed around problems that students work in small teams to solve under the guidance of facilitators, with early sequence problems designed to foster the problem-solving skills required to succeed in the course. This report describes students' impressions of and experiences in the course as they worked to solve the final problem at the end of the semester and compares those impressions, where applicable, to impressions gathered after they had completed the first problem near the beginning of the semester. Using grounded theory techniques to analyze the data, six central themes emerged from the implementation: course structure, facilitation roles, student roles, group processes, coconstruction, and resources. Implications for practice and potential instructional design solutions that may aid in future implementations are discussed.

The Effects of a Collaborative Problem-based Learning Experience on Students’ Motivation in Engineering Capstone Courses

“…Notably, our findings suggest that this negotiation is one of the most difficult tasks for instructors and advisors to implement well in PBL courses: balancing students' needs for empowerment and self-direction with their need to be provided with the support necessary to be successful. Some groups of students in our study wanted more guidance (i.e., more "hands-on"), whereas others liked the "hands-off" approach because they felt empowered by their freedom, echoing and extending the student perceptions identified by Henry et al (2012) in exploring PBL in a materials science course. The amount of help each group needed varied, but advisors need to understand what students prefer or expect, and then work with them to create an environment in which the students feel supported, even if that environment does not match the students' or advisor's preferences.…”

“…Their study also documented that stress-related factors were dominant predictors of engagement and persistence, and that autonomy (aligned with empowerment in the present study) was a strong support system; the link here between empowerment and particular course elements such as project selection and control extend the quantitative results evidenced in that work. Similarly, several studies have highlighted the mentor role in student engagement (e.g., Ge, Huang, & Dong, 2010;Henry et al, 2012) and the findings provide a direct link between specific facilitator behaviors and robust motivation constructs.…”

“…Although prior studies of PBL have explored specific motivation constructs such as self-efficacy (Bédard, Lison, Dalle, Côté, & Boutin, 2012;Dunlap, 2006) and specific components of course design such as group processes and student resources (Henry, Tawfik, Jonassen, Winholtz, & Khanna, 2012), few if any studies have provided a holistic exploration of established motivation constructs and concrete elements of PBL pedagogies such as the one described in this study. It is noteworthy that while the descriptions of PBL such as those provided by Hmelo-Silver (2004), de Graaf and, and Savery (2006) suggest that PBL can foster students' positive perceptions of the MUSIC components, poorly implemented PBL can risk fostering negative perceptions.…”

Taking a Leap of Faith: Redefining Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Through Project-Based Learning

“…In particular, the year-long experience enhanced students' multidisciplinary problem-solving skills and their ability to work effectively in teams. However, Henry, Tawfik, Jonassen, Winholtz, and Khanna (2012) found that PBL presented significant challenges to undergraduate engineering students; in particular, the students missed traditional faculty lectures and struggled to work successfully in groups. In fact, most of the studies cited above echo the findings of Henry et al that students struggle with the unfamiliarity of the PBL environment, which poses challenges for implementation.…”

Students’ Perceptions of and Responses to Teaching Assistant and Peer Feedback

“…The students in this study expressed an awareness that not all of the feedback from the TA was relevant to their work. In other PBL studies, students have expressed dissatisfaction with vague feedback from their instructors (Henry, Tawfik, Jonassen, Winholtz, & Khanna, 2012). Nelson and Schuun (2009) also suggest that feedback should avoid praise because it can be misguiding.…”