In the Learning & Leading with Technology pro and con article “Is PBL Practical?” Kevin Scott represents the “nay” side and Susan Thompson the “yea”. Neither educator denies the challenges of PBL. Scott says it is “too demanding for classroom use on a regular basis” and Thompson tellingly says “after a teacher has lived through a few PBL projects” implying that surviving the experience is a badge of honour. However demanding PBL is, I would argue vehemently with Scott’s assumption that Industrial Age methods currently employed by the majority of teachers is working. If these methods truly worked, we would not be dismayed by dropout rates and NCLB would not be needed. Scott writes:
Frustrated students are not successful and they do not leave with more knowledge. Instead, they are less motivated and crestfallen. It is not worth putting those students who are in need of our help the most out to sea without a sail. We need to focus our attention on the practices, core ideas, and strategies that work, not those that are the newest educational trend or that only work for exceptional learners.
Even with a 10% drop out rate, that means 1 in 10 learners have gone beyond frustration to hopelessness. Whether it is PBL or another method, we must practice differentiated instruction. All children start school as exceptional learners with individual learning styles. What our old methods often do is convince them that they are not capable of learning anything because we teach them as average learners with identical learning styles.
The authors of “Teacher’s Guide to International Collaboration on the Internet” have an itemized list of suggestions for preparing for a global PBL. Instead of considering the list items as challenges, I prefer to see the items as opportunities to teach the virtues. Virtues are universal and work in all cultures. We just need to make students aware of the differences in expression. On the list, manners is politeness, place is perceptiveness, cultural map is openness, high tech and low tech is consideration, and the others can also be translated into virtues. As the article states:
It is important that their global collaborations be embedded in an overarching philosophy of international education. In local to global collaborations using the Internet, the philosophy of international education is to provide action learning in real world contexts and experiences where students are given both opportunity, encouragement, mentoring….
It would be especially important to have students recognize the virtues in the other culture so everyone is seen as equal partners in the collaboration. In this way, they will see that while there may be superficial cultural differences there are profound human similarities.
Franz, K. & Midness, D. (2006). Is PBL Practical? ED Teacher’s Guide to International Collaboration on the Internet. p. 12. Retrieved on March 6, 2009 from http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/tech/international/guide_pg12.html.
International Society for Technology in Education. Is PBL Practical? Learning & Leading with Technology. August 2007, pp. 8-9.
