Educational Transformation through Teamwork: Partnering Faculty and IT

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Educational Transformation through
TeamworkPartnering Faculty and IT
www.udel.edu/pbl/AACU-Nov2003/

• George Watsonghw_at_udel.edu
• (with acknowledgement to
• Janet de Vry)
• University of Delaware

Technology, Learning, and Intellectual
DevelopmentAACUs Network for Academic
RenewalCambridge, Massachusetts, November 1,
2003
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Agenda IT/Faculty Partnership

• Interactive Case Study (30 min)
• What is PBL? (15)
• UD Partnership (15)
• Discussion (15)

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Case Study, Part 1

• Midday at a mid-sized university, midway through
  the semester, we listen in on a conversation
  between President Fixitnow and Provost Nolira

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Case Study, Part 1 (contd.)
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Case Study, Part 1 (contd.)
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Case Study, Part 1 (contd.)

• Activity 1 Discuss the questions below in small
  groups.
• If this scenario were to happen at your
  institution, how might the parameters of the
  conversation differ?
• How might the Provost encourage faculty to
  transform the learning process?
• At your institution, to whom would the Provost
  likely turn for assistance?

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Case Study, Part 2
Activity 2 Match the statements in the handout
with the following stakeholders.
Are there any stakeholders missing from this
list?
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Case Study, Part 3

• Activity Please keep the identified stakeholders
  in mind as you prepare answers to the following
  questions
• What are the important elements of a faculty
  development program in the use of instructional
  technology?
• How can we create a support program that will
  encourage enthusiastic faculty participation?
• How will we know if the training program was
  successful?

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The Way It Was... 1973
2003
graphing calculators, laptops, gigabytes and
gigahertz, ubiquitous computing
Computation
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The Way It Was... 1973
2003
e-mail, voice-mail, chatrooms, FAX, pagers, cell
phones, text messaging, instant
messaging, wireless connectivity
Communication
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The Way It Was... 1973
2003
Online Information web catalogs, networked
databases, Britannica Online, online
newspapers, course websites, CMS
Collections
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Education and the Cs of Technology
Computation and Calculation Communication and
Collaboration Collections and Connections
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An important question
Given the amazing advances in technology and the
dramatic change in the first-year experience, Can
we afford to continue teaching the way we were
taught?
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Education ReformandProblem-Based Learning
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Characteristics Neededin College Graduates

• High level of communication skills.
• Ability to define problems, gather and evaluate
  information, develop solutions.
• Team skills -- ability to work with others.
• Ability to use all of the above to address
  problems in a complex real-world setting.

Assurance in Undergraduate Education
(1994) Wingspread Conference, ECS, Boulder,
CO.994) Wingspread Conference, ECS, Boulder, CO
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Recommendations from theBoyer Commission Report

• Make research-based learning the standard.
• Build inquiry-based learning throughout the four
  years.
• Link communication skills and course work.
• Use information technology effectively.
• Cultivate a sense of community.

Boyer Commission on Educating Undergraduates in
the Research University, 1998Reinventing
Undergraduate Education A Blueprint for
Americas Research Universities.http//naples.cc.
sunysb.edu/Pres/boyer.nsf/
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the individuals learning the most in the
teacher-centered classrooms are the teachers
there. They have reserved for themselves the
very conditions that promote learning
What I know best I have taught
actively seeking new information, integrating it
with what is known, organizing it in a meaningful
way, and explaining it to others.
Page 35, Huba and Freed, Learner-Centered
Assessment on College Campuses Shifting the Focus
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What is Problem-Based Learning?
PBL is an learning approach that challenges
students to learn to learn, working
cooperatively in groups to seek solutions to
real world problems.

• PBL prepares students
• to think critically and analytically, and
• to find and use appropriate learning resources.

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What is Problem-Based Learning?

• The principal idea behind PBL is that the
  starting point for learning should be a problem,
  a query, or a puzzle that the learner wishes to
  solve.

Boud (1985)
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What are the CommonFeatures of PBL?

• Learning is initiated by a problem.
• Problems are based on complex, real-world
  situations.
• All information needed to solve problem is not
  initially given.
• Students identify, find, and use appropriate
  resources.
• Students work in permanent groups.

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PBL The Process

• Students are presented with a problem. They
  organize ideas and previous knowledge.
• Students pose questions, defining what they know
  and do not know.
• Students assign responsibility for questions,
  discuss resources.
• Students reconvene, explore newly learned
  information, refine questions.

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The Problem-BasedLearning Cycle
Assessment (when desired)
Overview
Problem, Project, or Assignment
Mini-lecture (as needed)
Whole Class Discussion
Group Discussion
Preparation of Group Product
Research
Group Discussion
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A Typical Day in a PBL Course
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The principal idea behind PBL is?

• A. PBL challenges students to learn to learn.
• B. Learning is initiated by a problem.
• C. Student-centered work in permanent groups.

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What is Problem-Based Learning?

• The principal idea behind PBL is that the
  starting point for learning should be a problem,
  a query, or a puzzle that the learner wishes to
  solve.

Boud (1985)
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Partnering Faculty and IT
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Institute for Transforming Undergraduate Education

• Created in 1997 to promote reform of
  undergraduate education through faculty
  development and course redesign.
• Initially funded by NSF Institution-Wide Reform
  of Undergraduate Education.
• ITUE Fellows receive hands-on experience in
  employing active learning strategies (PBL) and
  effective use of technology in their classrooms.

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ITUE Faculty

• PBL training from practitioners
• Collegial environment
• Ongoing peer support
• Funding and recognitions through grants
• Provide faculty who ask, How can I make learning
  more active?

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Elements Encourage both Pedagogy and Technology
Adoption

• Administrative Vision
• Robust Technological Infrastructure
• Partnerships
• Faculty Development/Encouragement
• Institutional Support
• Support Staff

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UD IT/Faculty Partnerships

• Institute for Transforming Undergraduate
  Education (ITUE)
• General Education Initiative
• Written and Oral Communications Task Force
• Next up! Quantitative Literacy

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ITUE Fellow describes use ofWebCT Communication
Tools
Faculty member skilled in both PBL and WebCT
Led class through a problem on justice for the
terrorists Used online groups in class to
address the problem
Audio clip
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10 Goals

• Goal 1 All students will attain effective skills
  in
• quantitative reasoning
• the use of information technology
• oral and written communication

Gen Ed Initiatives Life, Pathways to Discovery,
Capstone Experience
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Task Force on Oral and Written Communication
Skills
The mission formulate a plan with specific
action steps to ensure that undergraduates at UD
obtain and improve critical communication skills
during their courses of study
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The Synergy of Partnerships
Active Learning
Information Technology
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www.udel.edu/present/
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Collaborative workspace

• Similarities between PRESENT and PBL classrooms
• Flexible furniture
• Flexible equipment

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IT Support

• Half of IT support staff have masters degrees in
  education.
• Wide range of skillsprogramming, digital media
  specialist, graphics, Course Management Systems
  expertise.
• Instructional designer.
• Form support teams for faculty projects with
  Librarians and Center for Teaching Effectiveness
  staff.

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PRESENT programs

• Collaborative winter and summer teaching,
  learning and technology institutes.
• Year-long training program.
• One-on-one consultations and collaborations.
• Projects to implement faculty teaching/learning
  goals.
• Showcase and publicize faculty projects.

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Showcase Faculty Work
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Institutional Support Elements of grant proposal
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ITUE Technology Assistance Grants

• Grants staff and student time to apply active
  learning to a specific course.
• Awarded to ITUE fellows.

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IT Support Lessons Learned

• To change the curriculum, we need to change how
  faculty perceive teaching and learning.
• We infuse the campus culture with a variety of
  ways for faculty to learn about pedagogy and to
  reinforce that learning.
• Partnerships with faculty can help with faculty
  readiness.

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Faculty Perspective on Partnership

• Complementary strengths.
• Ongoing technical support.
• Ideas into reality.

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Partnership Success

• Early in the use of WebCT at UD,the adoption
  rate of WebCT by ITUE faculty was double that of
  full faculty.

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Other IT/Faculty Collaborations

• PBL Clearinghouse.
• WebCT discussion group training co-taught by
  faculty and IT in PBL format.
• Pilot of wireless carts for PBL classroom.
• Joint WebCT/ITUE weeklong institute.

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PBL Clearinghouse

• An online database of PBL articles and problems.
• All material is peer-reviewed by PBL
  practitioners for content and pedagogy.
• All problems are supported by learning objectives
  and resources, teaching and assessment notes.
• Holdings are searchable by author, discipline,
  keywords, or full text.
• Fully electronic submission, review, and
  publication cycle.
• Controlled access by free user subscription,
  students excluded.

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www.udel.edu/pblc
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Collaborative workspace

• Flexible furniture in PBL classroom

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Wireless collaborative space
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Why partner to transform learning?

• What do ITUE faculty members bring to
  transforming education?
• What do IT professionals bring?
• What elements of the UD experience could you
  adapt to your own campus?

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ITUE Calendar

• January 21-23, 2004Problem-Based Learning From
  Ideas to Solutions through Communication.Universi
  ty of Delaware
• June 13-19, 2004PBL2004, an international
  conference. Cancun, Mexico

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UD PBL online

• PBL at UDwww.udel.edu/pbl
• ITUE at UDwww.udel.edu/itue
• Watson homepagewww.physics.udel.edu/watson
• This presentationwww.udel.edu/pbl/AACU-Nov2003