Problem-based learning in science education: achievements, pitfalls and ways forward

Abstract

Preface This reprint of the Special Issue “Problem-Based Learning in Science Education: Achievements, Pitfalls and Ways Forward” deals with problem-based learning (PBL) in science education. Problem-based Learning (PBL) is a student-centered learning approach developed in the sixties within the scope of medical schools. Since then, PBL has been used in an ever-increasing diversity of areas, particularly in science education. The key feature of PBL is that it acknowledges problems (that should be real or seem to be real) as starting points for learning. In science education, PBL should focus on real-world problems, which are interdisciplinary in nature. Hence, PBL may enable students to learn content and to develop their competencies in learning, as well as individual and social abilities that are relevant for 21st century citizens. Introducing PBL in science education requires teachers and students to change their own ways of learning, teaching, and assessing. Being the first printed volume on PBL in science education, this Special Issue reprint aims at filling an existing gap in the specialized literature on science education and providing the reader with a set of systematic reviews and empirical papers that cover two broad dimensions of the topic: teaching and learning science through PBL, and educating teachers for promoting PBL in science education. The latter topic is relevant because PBL is an innovative and somehow demanding approach, and, therefore, it requires teachers to be trained to teach through PBL. With science education researchers, post-graduate students, science teacher educators, and schoolteachers as its target audience, this reprint offers 10 papers written by authors from a variety of countries that adopted diverse research approaches and concentrated on different education levels and diverse learning contexts. Considering the focus of this research, the papers may be organized into two sets: a set of seven papers that address teaching and learning, with three of them being heavily dependent on digital learning environments, and a set of three papers that deal with teacher education. In the first group of papers, Behiye Akcay and ˙Ibrahim Benek’s paper presents a systematic literature review of research that provides an overview of the key findings and trends in studies on problem-based learning within the context of Turkish science education. They noted that the most preferred research design was the quasi-experimental design, there was limited inclusion of final-year students, and researchers mainly preferred physics subjects for their studies. Robyn M. Gillies conducted a review of the literature on the role of inquiry-based learning (a variation of PBL) when students work in cooperative groups. He concluded that the inquiry-based learning process requires students to engage with others, share their ideas, acknowledge the contributions others make, evaluate new information, and communicate logically their various understandings. It also requires teachers to play an active role in structuring inquiry-based experiences and engaging students in discussions that facilitate critical thinking and learning. Joaquin Ayerbe-López and Francisco Javier Perales-Palacios report on the evaluation of a two-year-long environmental project designed under the PBL methodology to evaluate its implementation and didactic implications. These authors highlight the high levels of motivation, work, and participation among the students, as well as the didactic benefits of the enriching socialization of the project. They also identified some difficulties related to time management and cooperative group work, a lack of practice in the PBL methodology, and the use of ICT. Jorge Pozuelo-Muñoz, Elena Calvo-Zueco, Ester Sánchez-Sánchez, and Esther Cascarosa-Salillas present a study involving 16-year-old students in Spain, using a problem-based learning approach as a pedagogical mode to develop science skills, to analyze the development of science skills through an inquiry process in class. They concluded that the PBL methodology followed facilitates the learning of science and the acquisition of scientific skills. Clara Vasconcelos and Tânia Pinto report on a study that assessed whether teaching students about reducing pollution through nature-based solutions (NBSs) and a PBL approach based on digital tools could enhance their understanding and competencies in SDGs. These authors concluded that the students developed their knowledge about NBSs to improve air quality and showed a positive appreciation of PBL as an active methodology. Additionally, the study sheds light on the PBL facilitator’s role and the challenges students face during PBL. Stella A. Nicolaou and Ioanna Petrou analyzed how to redesign a face-to-face MSc centered around PBL for online implementation. The authors concluded that CiscoWebex is a suitable and user-friendly platform for synchronous online PBL; the students enjoyed both (face-to-face and online) formats and stated that online PBL is an effective teaching approach for promoting student learning. In regard to student interaction, the face-to-face mode was preferred, while online PBL was perceived as being more organized. Chrissa Papasarantou, Rene Alimisi, and Dimitris Alimisis’s paper introduces the virtual galleries method as a scaffold for applying PBL approaches in both physical and distance learning environments, within the field of STEM education. These authors argue that virtual galleries can facilitate PBL by serving as a conceptual framework for scaffolding the learning process, thus enabling the acquisition of new PBL-driven skills. As far as the papers dealing with teacher education are concerned, Adewale Magaji, Michael Adjani, and Samuel Coombes conducted a systematic review of the literature in the field of PBL, with a focus on preservice science teachers’ education. The authors concluded that PBL is not fully used in preservice science teachers’ education, even though it is an effective pedagogical approach that enables preservice science teachers to engage in the process of learning by taking part in the PBL design process and experiencing it in the classroom to learn from the process. Jorge Martín-García, María Eugenia Dies Álvarez, and Ana Sofia Afonso tried to find out whether teachers who coordinate science clubs in Portuguese schools promote activities that incorporate aspects of problem-based learning and project-based learning methodologies. Their results show that these teachers propose the implementation of projects and incorporate aspects of these strategies in the activities they conduct in science clubs, which offers an opportunity to develop PBL and PBL methodologies in a context free from the constraints of the classroom. Finally, Benjamin Aidoo examined how the educators of teachers have integrated PBL in science teacher education and how they feel about that. The teacher educators perceived that the PBL approach enabled them to create collaborative learning activities to interact and communicate with students, which can lead to the development of conceptual knowledge. Nevertheless, the study also indicated challenges such as a lack of belief and competence, inadequate resources, and limited time allocated for school inquiry-based lessons. As a concluding remark, it can be stated that the papers included in this Special Issue reprint indicate that PBL is a valuable approach to science teaching and learning, as well as being valuable for science teacher education. However, the authors point out some difficulties that may vanish if teacher education for PBL improves and the curricula of schools become more consistent with the spirit of PBL. The editors are grateful to the papers’ authors for their meaningful contribution to this Special Issue, to Kathy Zhao for providing the invitation and extending her trust to the editors, and to the reviewers and MDPI staff for their cooperation during the submission, review, and publishing processes. Finally, the editors would like to acknowledge the Research Centre on Education, Institute of Education, University of Minho, the FCT/MCTES-PT R&D Unit funded through projects UIDB/01661/2020 and UIDP/01661/2020, to which they belong.