scholarly journals Scaffolding Problem Solving in Teaching and Learning The DPACE Model - A Design Thinking Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-112
Author(s):  
Malliga K Govindasamy ◽  
Ngu Moi Kwe

Problem solving is a basic skill needed to function effectively in the working environment. Teachers are no exception to this professional demand. It is of utmost importance for teacher education programs to prepare pre-service teachers with this fundamental competency. The DPACE model is a preliminary effort by two teacher educators to enhance the problem-solving skills among pre-service teachers. The model was developed using the design thinking approach with reference to Vygotsky’s constructivism and grounded by questions as scaffolds to facilitate internalization of knowledge that teachers need to assist them in addressing and expanding their problem-solving boundaries. The main structure of the model consists of five domains developed with reference to computational thinking concepts. Each domain consists of open-ended questions formulated according to Bloom’s ordering of cognitive skills, taking pre-service teachers progressively toward better understanding of the problem and creating an efficient solution. This model was applied among 62 pre-service teachers enrolled in the TSLB3152 course at the Teacher Education Institute International Languages Campus, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In total, 86.67% of the respondents reported that the DPACE model helped them in their problem-solving task and almost 78% of them scored an A grade in their coursework tasks facilitated using the DPACE model. Efforts are needed to further refine the questions and field test the model in other courses or situations with the hope that this ongoing teacher education effort will create a paradigm shift in the quest toward mastery of 21st century skills among pre-service teachers.

Author(s):  
Nor Hasbiah Ubaidullah ◽  
Zulkifley Mohamed ◽  
Jamilah Hamid ◽  
Suliana Sulaiman ◽  
Rahmah Lob Yussof

Admittedly, the teaching and learning of programming courses in the computer science and information technology programs have been extremely challenging. Currently, most instructors depend on either the problem-solving technique or the metacognitive technique to help students develop a range of cognitive skills, including metacognitive skills, which are important in the development of a strong computational thinking skill required for 21st-century learning. Studies focusing on the practices of instructors in using both techniques are scarce, thus motivating the researchers to carry out this study. This study was based on a qualitative approach involving a case-study design in which five (5) male and five (5) female instructors were selected from 10 pre-university centers in Malaysia as the respondents and participants in an intervention program. The research instruments used were an interview checklist and intervention guidelines. As anticipated, the findings showed that the activities of each technique could only help students develop certain sub-skills of the computational thinking skill, thus underscoring the need for instructors to integrate both techniques in their teaching practices. Thus, it could be reasoned that using either the metacognitive technique or the problem-solving technique alone would not be sufficient to help students develop strong computational thinking skills, as each technique has its strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, it becomes imperative for instructors to leverage the strengths of both techniques by integrating both of them in the teaching and learning of programming courses.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Pamela O. Gilchrist ◽  
Alonzo B. Alexander ◽  
Adrian J. Green ◽  
Frieda E. Sanders ◽  
Ashley Q. Hooker ◽  
...  

Computational thinking is an essential skill in the modern global workforce. The current public health crisis has highlighted the need for students and educators to have a deeper understanding of epidemiology. While existing STEM curricula has addressed these topics in the past, current events present an opportunity for new curricula that can be designed to present epidemiology, the science of public health, as a modern topic for students that embeds the problem-solving and mathematics skills of computational thinking practices authentically. Using the Computational Thinking Taxonomy within the informal education setting of a STEM outreach program, a curriculum was developed to introduce middle school students to epidemiological concepts while developing their problem-solving skills, a subset of their computational thinking and mathematical thinking practices, in a contextually rich environment. The informal education setting at a Research I Institution provides avenues to connect diverse learners to visually engaging computational thinking and data science curricula to understand emerging teaching and learning approaches. This paper documents the theory and design approach used by researchers and practitioners to create a Pandemic Awareness STEM Curriculum and future implications for teaching and learning computational thinking practices through engaging with data science.


Author(s):  
Fariba Haghighi Irani ◽  
Azizeh Chalak ◽  
Hossein Heidari Tabrizi

Abstract The critical role of teachers suggests that assessing teacher identity construction helps teacher educators understand the changes in teachers and design materials in harmony with their needs in teacher education programs. However, only a few studies have focused on assessing pre-service teachers’ identity in the long term in Iran. To address this gap, the contribution of a pre-service teacher education program consisting of three phases, namely engage, study, and activate to the professional identity construction of eight pre-service teachers in an institute in Tehran was assessed. Pre-course and post-course interviews, two reflective essays, ten observation notes, and two teaching performances were gathered over a year and analyzed as guided by grounded theory and discourse analysis. Findings revealed two significant changes in the participants’ identities when they transitioned from engage to study and from study to activate phases that yielded study phase as the peak of the changes. Overall, three major shifts were identified in the participants’ identities: from a commitment to evaluation towards a commitment to modality, from one-dimensional to multi-dimensional perceptions, and from problem analysis to problem-solving skills. Current findings may facilitate teacher identity construction by designing local programs matching the needs of pre-service teachers. It may also assist teacher educators by assessing the quality of teachers’ performance and developing teacher assessment tools.


Author(s):  
Gillian Judson ◽  
Ross Powell ◽  
Kelly Robinson

Our intention is to share our lived experiences as educators of educators employing Imaginative Education (IE) pedagogy. We aim to illuminate IE’s influence on our students’, and our own, affective alertness, and to leave readers feeling the possibility of this pedagogy for teaching and learning. Inspired by the literary and research praxis of métissage (Chambers et al., 2012; Hasebe-Ludt et al., 2009; Hasebe-Ludt et al., 2010), we offer this polyphonic text as a weaving together of our discrete and collective voices as imaginative teacher educators. Our writing reflects a relational process, one that invites us as writers and colleagues to better understand each other and our practices as IE educators (Hasebe-Ludt et al., 2009). It also allows us to share with other practitioners our struggles, questions, and triumphs as we make sense of our individual and collective praxis: how IE’s theory informs our practice, and how our practice informs our understanding of IE’s theory. This text, like IE’s philosophy, invites heterogeneous possibilities.


10.28945/4327 ◽  
2019 ◽  

Aim/Purpose: Science is becoming a computational endeavor therefore Computational Thinking (CT) is gradually being accepted as a required skill for the 21st century science student. Students deserve relevant conceptual learning accessible through practical, constructionist approaches in cross-curricular applications therefore it is required for educators to define, practice and assess practical ways of introducing CT to science education starting from elementary school. Background: Computational Thinking is a set of problem-solving skills evolving from the computer science field. This work-in-progress research assesses the CT skills, along with science concepts, of students participating in a science program in school. The program pertains learning science by modeling and simulating real world phenomenon using an agent-based modeling practice. Methodology: This is an intervention research of a science program. It takes place as part of structured learning activities of 4th and 5th grade classes which are teacher-guided and are conducted in school. Both qualitative and quantitative evaluations are parts of the mixed methods research methodology using a variety of evaluation technique, including pretests and posttests, surveys, artifact-based interviews, in class observations and project evaluations. Contribution: CT is an emerging skill in learning science. It is requiring school systems to give increased attention for promoting students with the opportunity to engage in CT activities alongside with ways to promote a deeper understanding of science. Currently there is a lack of practical ways to do so and lack of methods to assess the results therefore it is an educational challenge. This paper presents a response to this challenge by proposing a practical program for school science courses and an assessment method. Findings: This is a research in progress which finding are based on a pilot study. The researches believe that findings may indicate improved degree of students' science understanding and problem-solving skills. Recommendations for Practitioners: Formulating computer simulations by students can have great potential on learning science with embedded CT skills. This approach could enable learners to see and interact with visualized representations of natural phenomena they create. Although most teachers do not learn about CT in their initial education, it is of paramount importance that such programs, as the one described in this research, will assist teachers with the opportunity to introduce CT into science studies. Recommendation for Researchers: Scientific simulation design in primary school is at its dawn. Future research investment and investigation should focus on assessment of aspects of the full Computational Thinking for Science taxonomy. In addition, to help teachers assess CT skills, new tools and criteria are required. Impact on Society: STEM related professions are lacking the man power required therefore the full potential of the economy of developed countries is not fulfilled. Having students acquire computational thinking skills through formal education may prepare the next generation of world class scientists and attract larger populations to these fields. Future Research: The inclusion of computational thinking as a core scientific practice in the Next Generation Science Standards is an important milestone, but there is still much work to do toward addressing the challenge of CT-Science education to grow a generation of technologically and scientifically savvy individuals. New comprehensive approaches are needed to cope with the complexity of cognitive processes related to CT.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-82
Author(s):  
Muhamad Syariffuddien Zuhrie ◽  
Munoto Munoto ◽  
I Gusti Putu Asto B ◽  
Lilik Anifah ◽  
Nur Hasanah

In the robotics program design basic course, it is very essential to be able to construct programming and then translate it into the language. If there is a design error in the algorithms and mistakes in the flowchart or an error in translating it into a programming language, the application software would be unable to work. The objectives of this study are to develop the basic teaching module for Robotics Programming and to implement robotics courses oriented on contextual teaching and learning to enhance university students' problem-solving skills. This study was designed with pre-action, action and reports procedures. 4D development was employed in the software development process. Implementation processes cover four phases: identifying, planning, creating, and disseminating. The findings suggested that contextual teaching and learning enable students to be actively engaged in the learning process encourage and motivated more active students' activities and promote creativity.


Author(s):  
Luiz Otavio Rodrigues Mendes ◽  
Ana Lucia Pereira ◽  
Marcelo Carlos de Proença

ResumoA resolução de problemas, quando trabalhada com o problema como ponto de partida, tem apresentado profícuas possibilidades no ensino superior. No entanto, quais as possíveis fragilidades quando se trabalha com esta abordagem nesta perspectiva? À vista disso, este artigo apresenta o resultado de uma pesquisa que tem como objetivo desvelar as fragilidades que se evidenciam a partir do desenvolvimento da abordagem de resolução de problemas, em que se tem o problema como ponto de partida na formação inicial de professores de Matemática, apresentadas em teses e dissertações. A partir de uma revisão sistemática da literatura, encontramos 12 pesquisas que constituíram o corpus de dados, para serem analisadas seguindo as técnicas de Análise de Conteúdo, de onde foi possível identificarmos quatro categorias. Os principais resultados revelam que as fragilidades se relacionam com: I) dificuldades quanto à falta de conhecimento sobre o conteúdo matemático da educação básica pelos licenciandos; II) dificuldades apresentadas pelos licenciandos em comunicar suas ideias a respeito do conteúdo matemático trabalhado; III) dificuldade no entendimento dos problemas pelos estudantes; e, IV) dificuldades relativas ao tempo, referentes à realização das atividades pelos licenciandos e ao desenvolvimento da abordagem de ensino. Tais apontamentos podem contribuir com pesquisas futuras que desejem traçar este caminho, aprimorando-as e contribuindo com o processo de ensino e aprendizagem da Matemática.Palavras-chave: Solução de problemas, Formação inicial de professores, Matemática.AbstractWhen working with the problem as a starting point, problem-solving has presented fruitful possibilities in Higher Education. However, what are the possible weaknesses when working with this approach from this perspective? In view of this, this article presents the result of research that aims to unveil the fragilities that are evident from the development of the problem-solving approach, in which the problem is taken as a starting point in the initial training of mathematics teachers, presented in theses and dissertations. From a systematic review of the literature, we found 12 surveys that constituted the corpus of data, to be analyzed following the Content Analysis techniques, from which it was possible to identify four categories. The main results reveal that the weaknesses are related to I) difficulties related to the students’ lack of knowledge about the mathematical content of basic education; II) students’ difficulties to communicate their ideas about the mathematical content worked; III) students’ difficulty in understanding the problems; and, IV) difficulties related to time, concerning the students’ activity performance and the development of the teaching approach. Such notes can contribute to future research that wishes to follow this path, improving them and contributing to the process of teaching and learning Mathematics.Keywords: Problem-solving, Initial teacher education, Mathematics.ResumenLa resolución de problemas cuando se trabaja con el problema como punto de partida, ha presentado posibilidades fructíferas en la educación superior. Sin embargo, ¿cuáles son las posibles debilidades de entender y trabajar con este enfoque en esta perspectiva? En vista de esto, este artículo presenta el resultado de una investigación que tiene como objetivo develar las debilidades que se evidencian a partir del desarrollo del enfoque de resolución de problemas, en el que el problema se toma como punto de partida en la formación inicial de docentes de Matemáticas, presentadas en tesis y disertaciones. A partir de una revisión sistemática de la literatura, se encontraron 12 investigaciones que constituían el corpus de datos, para ser analizadas siguiendo las técnicas de Análisis de Contenido de manera cualitativa. Los principales resultados revelan que las debilidades están relacionadas con I) dificultades relacionadas con la falta de conocimiento sobre el contenido matemático de la Educación Básica por parte de los estudiantes de docencia, II) dificultades presentadas por los estudiantes de docencia para comunicar sus ideas sobre el contenido matemático trabajado, III) dificultad presentada por los alumnos para comprender problemas y IV) dificultad relacionada con el tiempo para desarrollar actividades y aplicar el enfoque. Tales notas pueden contribuir a futuras investigaciones que deseen trazar este camino, mejorarlas y contribuir al proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje de las Matemáticas.Palabras clave: Resolución de problemas, Formación inicial de profesores, Matemáticas


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shanthi Tamilselvam ◽  
Johari Surif

This study aims to evaluate the suitability of the Scenario Based Learning Module (SBL), which has been designed in the topic of Problem Solving Models. The study also aims to examine the advantages of SBL in universities and secondary education levels.  In addition, this study was conducted to find out the barriers and constraints in the designated SBL.  Lecturers from a university and a secondary school participated in this study which is conducted as an interview.  The interview is aimed to gather information on the suitability and features of the module, as well as the advantages and obstacles in the SBL module.  The data obtained from the interviews are qualitatively analyzed through the transcription process.  The findings show that the modules are designed to be practiced at university level among students. The findings also show that the module has many advantages in terms of understanding the learning content, thinking skills and problem solving skills, social and collaborative skills and intrinsic motivation of students.  Additionally, obstacles and constraints that exist in SBL are also discussed. This study benefits from the perspective of providing information on the suitability, advantages and obstacles of SBL for the Problem Solving course in Chemistry Education.  In fact, university lecturers and secondary school teachers can take this study as a reference for SBL applications in teaching and learning.  University students can also benefit from the SBL module designed and the results of this study.


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