AUC Academic Conference 'From Virtual to Reality' The University of
Queensland 1996AUC Academic Conference 'From Virtual to Reality' The University of
Queensland 1996
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Paper Title:
Problem-based Learning by CD-ROM:
A strategy for pedagogically
sound applications of multimediaPresenter / Author:
Mark Chambers, The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand
Keywords: Problem Based Learning, Multimedia
Faculty area: Communication, Mathematics & Languages
Abstract
This paper outlines fundamental concepts relevant to work in progress to develop a multimedia authoring tool for educational applications. The project attempts to derive pedagogically sound design principles from a blend of congruent elements drawn from constructivist learning theory and the constructionist movement of social psychology. The software will feature Problem-based Learning as the primary strategy for the appropriate use of multimedia for educational purposes. The design of the authoring tool is also deeply influenced by the world view of the late physicist and philosopher David Bohm who argued that study of social phenomena, as well as quantum mechanics, should be undertaken from the perspective of a "wholeness and implicate order" of an entire system rather than by a mastery of individual parts which are considered in isolation. An application of Bohm's methodology to the design of educational multimedia rejects structured non-linear instructional modules, as well as the production of mere linear digital textbooks, in favour of media which present problems without any predetermined solution paths. Such non-structured learning experiences will require the participation of a mentor who can provide cues and Socratic support to the learner as he or she constructs meaning relevant to a specific context or vocation from a labyrinth of information.
I. THE CHALLENGE
In Converging: Technology, Work and Learning, the Australian Employment and Skills Formation Council (1995) observed that the educational use of applications of convergent communication and computer technologies may be improved:
"...the link between learning theory and the new technologies has not yet developed, although there seems strong potential for enhancing human interaction and improving access to information and knowledge..."
"...there is a problem with the quality of technology-delivered materials, especially with relation to multimedia..."
"...teachers at every level need to believe that the technologies can add value to their work..."
"...employing authorities have not yet grasped the full significance and potential of the technologies for the learning process, or established effective implementation strategies..."
Converging: Technology, Work and Learning presents educationalists with a challenge to discover how such new technologies may be utilised for maximum advantage in educational settings. This paper is an interim report of work in progress in response to that challenge. The author of this paper is currently engaged in a project to develop an educational multimedia authoring tool which features Problem-based Learning (PBL) as the primary method of stimulating a learner's construction of meaning from an educational experience. The purpose of this paper is to outline fundamental design considerations underpinning this project in order to stimulate discussion with researchers and developers who share an interest in the issues raised.
II. BACKGROUND TO THE CURRENT STUDY
In order to design an appropriate learning experience to be mediated by classroom activity, correspondence, television, CD-ROM or any other means, one must first ask "What is it that we want our learners to learn?" In 1994, Clift and Chambers addressed this question in a study commissioned by the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand and the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) entitled "Educational Considerations in the Development of a Generic Degree Programme." Based upon a broad review of the literature concerning best educational practice, the Clift and Chambers (1994) concluded:
1. Learners should be assisted to develop their own cognitive strategies for using, managing and discovering knowledge. (Wittrock, 1977)
2. Learning media should seek to foster in learners the skills and knowledge required for deriving solutions, evaluating their validity and judging the most appropriate solution for a given situation. (Eisner, 1993)
3. Course materials should reflect "coherence" with the full integration of subject content, presentation strategies and assessment all working in close harmony with the intended learning outcomes. (Hall, 1992)
4. Problem-solving skills fostered by the course should require students to apply principles and concepts both from within and without their "field" (cf. Vilkinas and Cartan, 1990) as well as demonstrate greater flexibility in their modes of thinking (ie, "fluid intelligence"). (Snow, 1980)
5. Learning materials should foster generic skills where the stress is on developing a problem-solving capacity rather than teaching content. (See Burns, et. al., 1990)
The Clift and Chambers study contributed to the development of the Open Polytechnic's new Bachelor of Applied Science which was accredited by NZQA in late 1994 with majors in Environment, Psychology and Communication Studies. The degree program is designed to foster in learners the following generic skills at all levels; Self-management, conceptual skills, creative problem-solving, holistic thinking, self-directed learning and literacy. (Chambers, Clift & Sissons, 1995)
Concurrently with the Clift and Chambers research, a subsidiary project was commissioned for a team of Open Polytechnic staff to demonstrate the concepts derived in the process of the parent study. The format of this secondary project was a prototype CD-ROM presentation of a segment of a proposed first year degree course in Economic Reasoning. That prototype CD-ROM, developed with Apple Media Tool and popular graphics software programs, was published at the 1995 Distance Education Association of New Zealand (DEANZ) Conference in Auckland. (see Chambers, Clift & Lockett, 1995)
III. FEATURES OF THE "LEARNING CONSTRUCTION KIT"
The current software development project in progress is provisionally named the "Learning Construction Kit". The final product is expected to have following features:
1. Low cost, ease of use, and an intuitive, point and click GUI,
2. Suitability for use without elaborate training by academic staff and students at primary, secondary or tertiary educational and training institutions which are equipped with inexpensive AV computers and camcorders,
3. Presentation in a constructivist problem-based learning format,
4. Incorporation of physicist and philosopher David Bohm's (1980) approach to the study of complex phenomena as an "unbroken whole" system, rather than attempting to acquire expertise in a discipline in a serial and isolated mastery of its component parts; and,
5. Recognition of the indispensability of the learner-mentor interactions as a fundamental element in the optimal learning process which may be supplemented, but not replaced, by computer-based multimedia presentations.
The rationale for the cost and functionality specifications, in points 1. and 2. above, is the premise that multimedia authoring software for educational purposes should be demystified and accessible to the broadest number of teachers and their students who wish to create their own multimedia learning materials.
A further premise of this project is that educational use of multimedia does not require broadcast quality standards or the creation of expensive graphic effects in order to be effective. It is submitted that, for educational purposes, the trade-off between production values and ease of production should fall heavily on the side of simplicity and low cost.
A justification for the specification of problem-based learning as the principal strategy for the educational multimedia design is offered in the next section of this paper. This will be followed by an argument for the incorporation of a Bohmian approach to the design of learning material for the study of complex phenomena such as economics or the environment.
Finally, this paper draws on the constructionist school of social psychology to contend that while computer-based multimedia may serve as an excellent supplement to the interaction between a learner and his or her mentor, it is a poor substitute for that relationship. Accordingly, the "Learning Construction Kit" draws on concepts of best practice for distance an open learning environments to facilitate effective mentoring techniques.
IV. PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING
A succinct answer to the question: "Why is problem-based learning a pedagogically desirable technique?" can be found in the words of educationalist Edwin M Bridges (1995) (invoking the memory of Harvard academic C. Cragg): "Because wisdom cannot be told." Bridges observes that "teaching is not understood in PBL as the transmission of knowledge nor is learning the acquisition of knowledge." PBL is based on the assumption that learning involves both knowing and doing that the ability to use knowledge is as important as acquiring it.
What is valued in the PBL approach is the opportunity for learners to gain practical skills by learning to how to solve difficult, novel and ambiguous problems by applying theoretical concepts as analytical tools to prior knowledge in a context relevant to the learner's present circumstances. Burns, Clift and Duncan describe (1990) this active creation of meaning by processing new information in the light of prior knowledge as the process we know by the word "understanding."
Bridges (1995) observes that there is growing recognition in the literature that institutions of higher learning worldwide find it increasingly imperative to adapt to exponentially growing volumes of data and information which are in part a consequence of the emergence of remarkably efficient information technologies. These developments place a premium on life long learning and the ability of individuals to use critical reasoning capabilities in the synthesis of new knowledge.
V. APPLICATION OF PBL TO MULTIMEDIA DESIGN
The "Learning Construction Kit' facilitates the production of a series of problems relevant to a given discipline or vocation, typically in the form of a sequence of video clips which depict the kind of problems which may be encountered by professionals in that context. The Kit utilises the storage capacity of CD-ROM (which will dramatically increase with the widespread dissemination of DVD formats) to simulate a range of resources available to a professional within a given discipline or vocation. Accordingly, the Kit will facilitate the collation of textbooks, journal articles, newsclips, interviews, encyclopedias, frequently asked questions, hypertext glossaries, a search engine and Internet links. A learner will be able to access any resource on the disk from any point. Each problem is presented in such a way that no single solution path can be deemed correct and will enable the learner to utilise virtually any aspect of the materials collected on the CD-ROM in an integrative fashion to synthesise a solution. The important consideration is how the learner addresses the issues raised based on the criteria the student sets for a desirable outcome. This approach entails challenging learners to derive solutions to a series of tasks of increasing complexity. Learners are stimulated to seek useful information and focus on the process of thinking about problems rather than learning subject matter by rote. (Gibbs, 1991)
An issue which merits further research is the necessity for group interaction of learners for PBL to attain optimal effectiveness when presented on CD-ROM. It is recommended that where possible, PBL on CD-ROM be presented to study groups of learners for collaborative problem-solving and supportive learning interactions.
VI. BOHM'S CONCEPT OF "WHOLENESS AND IMPLICATE ORDER"
The design of the authoring tool is also influenced by the world view of the late physicist and philosopher David Bohm who argued that study of social phenomena, as well as quantum mechanics, should be undertaken from the perspective of a "wholeness and implicate order" of an entire system rather than by a mastery of individual parts which are considered in isolation. Bohm (1980) argued:
"...this sort of ability of man to separate himself from his environment and to divide and apportion things ultimately led to a wide range of negative and destructive results, because man lost awareness of what he was doing and thus extended the process of division beyond the limits within which it works properly. In essence, the process of division is a way of thinking about things that is convenient and useful...However, when this mode of thought is applied more broadly to man's notion of himself and the whole world in which he lives (ie. to his self-world view), then man ceases to regard the resulting divisions as merely useful or convenient and begins to see and experience himself and his world as actually constituted of separately existent fragments. Being guided by a fragmentary self-world view, man then acts in such a way as to try to break himself and the world up, so that all seems to correspond to his way of thinking."
Bohm's vision resonates with the constructivist PBL strategy promoted in this paper. It is highly desirable that students learn to creatively draw upon to totality of the resources available to them in the search for solutions to problems. Presenting learners with problems in which it clear that no preferred solution path has been determined compels the student to utilise their own judgement in formulating a solution rather than seeking to replicate the solution intended by course designers. An application of Bohm's methodology to the design of multimedia rejects predetermined non-linear structures for learning materials on CD-ROM, as well as linear programming, in favour of media which present problems without any predetermined solution paths.
VII. THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE
There is a growing body of literature suggesting that constructivist learning theory, exemplified by PBL and the holistic philosophy of David Bohm are both gaining widespread support. This design project incorporates the compatible elements of a third metatheory which has a broad following; social constructionism. The philosopher Alfred Schutz (1967), one of the founders of the social constructionist movement once expressed its core concept as follows:
"The world of my daily life is by no means my private world but is from the outset an intersubjective one, shared with my fellow men, experienced and interpreted by others: in brief, it is a world common to all of us. The unique biographical situation in which I find myself within the world at any moment of my existence is only to a very small extent of my own making."
Social constructionists [cf. Schutz (1967), Berger and Luckmann (1966) and Gergen (1985)]. contend that the language used in a culture shapes the reality in which that culture exists. Gergen (ibid.) summarises the constructionist logic as follows: As the world is known through human experience mediated principally by language, and categories of language used to classify things are situational and derived from social interaction, therefore reality is socially constructed by the continuing communicative interactions of members of a social group or culture.
Biocca (1995) explores the social construction of a learning experience embedded within the design of the course materials. Each educational technology entails the communication of a discourse that influences how learners think about reality. At the core of this development project in CD-ROM-based instruction is a commitment to the essential role of human interaction whose support of the learner facilitates a constructive dialogue as the learner constructs meaning from the educational experience.
Multimedia supplements the learning experience by presenting a simulation of vast resources provided in a range of contexts. What multimedia lacks is the ability to interact dynamically and intelligently in a discourse with every learner. This is the role of the human mentor that facilitates and manages the learning experience of an individual acquiring the cognitive and domain skills of a discipline. Again what is sought is not the acquisition of specific content knowledge but rather the growing sophistication of a learner in addressing problems typical of a discipline by using theories and concepts as tools of analysis. This process of development in a persons cognitive reasoning capacities is best facilitated by a dialogue with an accomplished mentor until machines are capable of fully simulating the cognitive and social repertoire of humans.
The literature suggests that computer-mediated communication (CMC) is mode of choice for task-oriented communication and problem-solving (Palmer, 1995). However, in a survey of studies, Palmer (ibid.) delineated a number of perceived deficiencies of CMC as a means of interpersonal communications which limit the transmission of interpersonal and social information, including the restriction of "social presence", diminished social context cues and restricted number of channels, particularly nonverbal vocal and kinesic modes of expression. Palmer notes that we are in a transitional period in which CMC formats are increasingly sophisticated in their ability to simulate the proximal advantages of face-to-face interactions. However, pending widespread dissemination of synchronous broadband telecommunications educational technologies, for most learners, the limitations of CMC for interpersonal communications noted in the literature remain valid. Such limitations are major impediments to the mode of educational multimedia delivery advocated in this paper. The synchronous interactions of the learners and their mentors are fundamental to efficacy of the multimedia strategies outlined above. Without an interactive guide, a Bohmian "unstructured wholeness" approach to the presentation of PBL modules could leave a learner submerged in his or her options.
VIII. THE FUTURE
It is acknowledged that, at present, computer-based multimedia learning materials constitute a very small component of educational programs in New Zealand. However, the increasingly widespread reticulation of fiber-optic technologies promises to transform educational and other social structures worldwide. Negroponte (1995), Tiffin & Rajasingham (1995) and Gilder (1995) each discuss the implications of the advent, early in the next century, of "virtually unlimited bandwidth" in which such phenomena as telepresence as a means of interpersonal interaction will become commonplace. The impact of such a development may entail considerable adverse social impacts as well as benefits. (Chambers, 1995a)
It is difficult to estimate the impact such telecommunications developments will have on education except to state the conventional wisdom that such transformations will be profound, particularly if the cost of telecommunications to the consumer drops to a small fraction of current charges for telephone use. Gilder (1995) suggests that one consequence of the forthcoming "bandwidth tidalwave" may be unlimited free telecommunications use by consumers except for the costs of equipment rental. In such a transformed global mediascape, distance and open learning may emerge as the primary delivery mechanisms for education at all levels as contact educational institutions increasingly become rare enclaves for the economic elites. If so, the issues raised in this paper are likely to increase in significance as the educational uses of interactive multimedia evolve from its contemporary relative insignificance to become the primary mode of learning in the Information Society.
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Mark Chambers
Head of School,
Communication, Mathematics & Languages
The Open Polytechnic of New ZealandPh: 04 566 6189
Fax: 04 566 5633email: chamar@topmz.ac.nz
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