Group items tagged

Problem-based approaches to learning have a long history of advocating experience-based education. Psychological research and theory suggests that by having students learn through the experience of solving problems, they can learn both content and thinking strategies. Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional method in which students learn through facilitated problem solving. In PBL, student learning centers on a complex problem that does not have a single correct answer. Students work in ollaborative groups to identify what they need to learn in order to solve a problem. They engage in self-directed learning (SDL) and then apply their new knowledge to the problem and reflect on what they learned and the effectiveness of the strategies employed. The teacher acts to facilitate the learning process rather than to provide knowledge. The goals of PBL include helping students develop 1) flexible knowledge, 2) effective problem-solving skills, 3) SDL skills, 4) effective collaboration skills, and 5) intrinsic motivation. This article discusses the nature of learning in PBL and examines the empirical evidence supporting it. There is considerable research on the first 3 goals of PBL but little on the last 2. Moreover, minimal research has been conducted outside medical and gifted education. Understanding how these goals are achieved with less skilled learners is an important part of a research agenda for PBL. The evidence suggests that PBL is an instructional approach that offers the potential to help students develop flexible understanding and lifelong learning skills.

This problem comprehension or schema knowledge is facilitated when the schema underlying a given text is used as a vehicle to translate the information in the text into a semantic representation. this would involve restating the problem, identifying the problem type (i.e. change), discerning relevant and irrelevant information, determining information that is needed for solution, and representing the problem as a diagram (Mayer, 1999).  Problem solution requires representing the problem as a number sentence or list of operations or identifying subgoals for multistep problems (i.e. strategic knowledge) and carrying out single or chains of calculations (i.e. procedural knowledge; Mayer 1999). Because additive problem structures (i.e. change, group, compare) involve a "family" (e.g. 3, 5, 8), connecting the number family to the problem structures is critical to problem solution (Van de Walle, 2004). Although procedural knowledge is important, it (is extremely limited unless it is connected to a conceptual knowledge base" (Prawat, 1989, p. 10).  SBI- Schema-based instructionGSI- General strategy instruction SBI Components (some not necessarily all) a) SBI that used either number line diagrams to understand the semantic structure of compare word problems or schematic diagrams to solve a range of word problems. b) schema-induction instruction, c) SBI that explicitly taught for transfer by focusing on similar problem types, and d) SBI combined with metacognitive instruction.  different format, different question, unfamililiar vocabulary, irrelevent information, combining problem types, and mixing superficial features

Contraption game, great for problem solving, logic, and fun! Doesn't address specific core content, but does offer students opportunity to explore, build, and persevere in problem solving situations. Great extra credit link. I think having students build models, share with the class, and make the goal to have lots of different examples to embed in a class wiki would be awesome!

Reading is a Problem-Solving Process. Why Not Try the Thumb Method? New blog post by Denise Finley about supporting students while they learn to read scientifically!

Princeton scientist with an interdisciplinary bent has taken two well-known problems in mathematics and reformulated them as a physics question, offering new tools to solve challenges relevant to a host of subjects ranging from improving data compression to detecting gravitational waves.

The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice. More information on many of our other activities can be found here. On our website you will find thousands of our free mathematics enrichment materials (problems, articles and games) for teachers and learners from ages 5 to 19 years. All the resources are designed to develop subject knowledge, problem-solving and mathematical thinking skills. The website is updated with new material on the first day of every month. For guidance on how to find the right resources for you, go to the Help section of the site.

Interesting approach to using flip in a mathematics classroom. I love having students create product rather than just solving problems. I would even like to see students create their own problems in the future. 

I like the focus on instructional routines that promote problem solving/creative thinking as the focus not the technology. It's a belief that I continue to espouse, but as usual David says it more eloquently (and succinctly) than I do.

Different categories on the MIT teaching with technology page. Great way of thinking about different issues and ways of solving some of those issues from MIT's perspective.

Follow-up to the BEAR-4 near space video from amateur radio enthusiasts from Edmonton, CA. These students (yes, MIT students) capture still photos from space for $150 worth of equipment. Again, it's all about letting students solve problems, using technology that is available to them, and sharing it! Talk about engaging!!!!!

The Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) was developed to help guide the complex task of evaluating technology integration in the classroom. Basic technology skills and integration of technology into the curriculum go hand-in-hand to form teacher technology literacy. Encouraging the seamless use of technology in all curriculum areas and promoting technology literacy are both key NCLB:Title II-D/EETT program purposes. The Inventory for Teacher Technology Skills (ITTS) companion tool is designed to help districts evaluate teachers' current levels of proficiency with technology and is also used as a professional development planning and needs assessment resource. The TIM is envisioned as an EETT program resource which can help support the full integration of technology in Florida schools. What is in each cell? Each cell in the matrix will have a video (or several videos) which illustrate the integration of technology in classrooms where only a few computers are available and/or classrooms where every student has access to a laptop computer. Transformation The teacher creates a rich learning environment in which students regularly engage in activities that would have been impossible to achieve without technology. Active Indicator: Given ongoing access to online resources, students actively select and pursue topics beyond the limitations of even the best school library. Collaborative Indicator: Technology enables students to collaborate with peers and experts irrespective of time zone or physical distances. Constructive Indicator: Students use technology to construct, share, and publish knowledge to a worldwide audience. Authentic Indicator: By means of technology tools, students participate in outside-of-school projects and problem-solving activities that have meaning for the students and the community. Goal Directed Indicator: Students engage in ongoing metacognative activities at a level that would be unattainable without the support of technol

Here is a phenomenal lesson, accessible to any child who knows how to subtract, and compelling to everyone, up to and including professional mathematicians. Get a kid engaged in it, and they'll do hundreds of subtraction problems without complaint, because it's helping them solve an honest mathematical mystery. I've seen this idea discussed in math education circles, but I haven't found any references to it online, so I want to share it here.

Simple example of a blog post that has lots of power. This is the kind of blog post that I think we can do at CTL as an on-going piece of our work. It captures the ideas that we generate all the time, applies them to the work we are doing, provides a systemic way of producing new material that we can later turn into finished pieces of work. If we begin now, capturing these kinds of thoughts in a library, we can launch a CTL blog with a catalog of ideas that we can turn into posts. If the authors need some help clarifying/fine tuning that is where the system comes into play. By the way this is a fantastic post about the potential of something that is already in many students hands, but repackaged for use in an educational way. I imagine this as part of any distance network that we create, especially with Africa.

skills to solve equations, explanations of events from a Civil War Battle, aspects of an ecosystem, fill in the blank.

Not a lot of posts, but some very good examples of the bar model. I share it because I think the examples are useful for teachers to understand how to help students bridge the gap between text and symbolic representation. 

Teaching kids to be problem solvers