Learning how to use the laboratory through Problem-based learning : a pilot study in an undergraduate physical sciences teacher education programme

Abstract

Despite the fact that Portuguese curricula place the learner at the centre of the teaching process and acknowledge modern teaching methodologies, teachers often ignore the curriculum proposals and keep their traditional ways of teaching. Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is an active learning methodology that leads students to acquire new conceptual knowledge and to develop problem-solving competencies by solving problems. However, it has not yet concentrated enough Portuguese teacher educatorsJ attention. This paper aims at analysing 38 prospective physical sciences teachers' (PTs) reactions towards learning about how to use the laboratory for science teaching through problembased learning. Subjects were invited to watch a video on a discussion among four science teachers about the issue of using the laboratory for teaching. Then, they were asked to formulate questions that were raised by the video. Afterwards, in small groups, PTs were asked to discuss and organize those questions and to find out answers for them. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire, focusing on studentsJ opinions on PBL, and analysis of the videotape of studentsJ discussion and evaluation of the whole approach. Results indicate that PTs enjoyed the new way of learning and felt that they developed some meta-cognitive and social competencies.