Workshops

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS

April 27-May 1, 2009 -Training and Using SPs for Teaching and Assessment - Springfield, IL
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June 16-19, 2009 - Essentials of Problem-Based Learning: Facilitator Training, Curriculum Design, Problem Construction and Student Assessment
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WORKSHOPS THAT CAN BE OFFERED
The following are the basic elements of workshops that the Department of Medical Education has carried out to meet the needs of many schools, universities, professional schools, K-16 schools, and other institutions wishing to know more about PBL, to interest teachers and administrators in PBL, and to provide teacher training in tutorial skills, problem development, curriculum development and assessment. These elements are often combined or presented serially in workshops to meet the particular needs of participants. All workshops involve active participation by the learners.

PBL Demonstration with Teachers as Learners
Teachers interested in learning about PBL are put into a PBL working group with a master PBL tutor. They are carried through the complete PBL process including self-directed learning in between. Afterwards they reflect on the experience and the objectives possible for PBL. This allows faculty to appreciate the role of the tutor, the power of PBL to motivate learning, and the depth of learning possible.

PBL Demonstration Using Students
Following a brief introduction to PBL, the PBL process is demonstrated using a master tutor with students. This is characteristically two 90 minute sessions with a time for student self-directed learning between sessions. During the demonstration another master tutor uses an overhead projector to provide a running commentary on the PBL process going on in the group; the strategies being used by the tutor, the interactions among group members, the pedagogical implications, etc. This has made the observation of the PBL process much more insightful, informative and enjoyable.

Teacher Training in PBL/Teachers Alternately Tutors and Learners
Teachers in groups of 5 to 8 practice tutoring each other in rotation, under the guidance of a master tutor. A minimum of three days is recommended.

Teacher Training in PBL Tutorial Skills, Using Students
Participant teachers, in groups of no more than three, tutor a group of 4 to 6 students in rotation under the supervision and coaching of a master tutor. The group stops frequently to discuss tutorial problems and reflect on their progress with feedback from the students. They are given more independence as they progress. The duration of this workshop is variable, but the longer it runs the more secure the participants become in their tutoring skills. A minimum of four days is recommended. A workshop of twenty participants, for example, would require five master tutors from our department and twenty students. It is an actual hands-on workshop.

Selection and Contstruction of PBL Problems/Curricula
Through examples, discussions and hands-on work, participants learn to select and design problems in their own discipline or profession to meet their own curricular objectives and to assemble a PBL curriculum. At the completion of the workshop they will have a number of problems to use in their teaching and the outline for a curriculum.

Advanced Tutorial Skills
This workshop is designed for teachers who have been actively involved in tutoring. It involves discussion of their experiences in facilitating student activity in various stages of the PBL process. The intent of the workshop is to enable the participants to make their tutorial skills almost automatic and flexible to meet a variety of challenges. It is an active hands-on workshop.

Training of Trainers
In this workshop, experienced tutors are provided the training necessary to provide tutor training to teachers in their own school or institution.