Advanced Pedagogy- is the discipline that deals with the theory and practice of education; or

the study and practice of 'how best to teach'. Its aims range from the general (full development of the
human being via liberal education) to the narrower specifics of vocational education (the imparting
and acquisition of specific skills).
The word pedagogue actually relates to the slave who escorts Roman children to
school. In Denmark, a pedagogue is a practitioner of pedagogy. The term is primarily used for
individuals who occupy jobs in pre-school education (such as kindergartens and nurseries) in
Scandinavia. But a pedagogue can occupy various kinds of jobs, e.g. in retirement
homes, prisons, orphanages, and human resource management. These are often recognized as
social pedagogues as they perform on behalf of society.
Principles of advance pedagogy
The version of the principles given below is therefore an attempt to conceptualize the
principles in a way that makes them applicable to all sectors. Three changes are fundamental.
First, the phrase teaching and learning is replaced by pedagogy because teachers and
teaching, as such, are less evident in post-compulsory settings. Some people argue that
pedagogy, by definition, has application only to the learning of children. But learning
processes, as distinct from learning contexts, do not fundamentally change as children
become adults, so we have retained pedagogy. The term pedagogy also has the advantage
of highlighting the contingent nature of effective teaching i.e. the interventions of teachers or
trainers are most effective when they are planned in response to how learners are learning.
Secondly, we have attempted to broaden the conception of what is to be learned, beyond the
notions of curricula and subjects associated with schools. Thirdly, we have given more
prominence to the importance of learning relationships which are crucial in all sectors.
1. Effective pedagogy equips learners for life in its broadest sense. Learning should aim to
help individuals and groups to develop the intellectual, personal and social resources that will
enable them to participate as active citizens, contribute to economic development and flourish
as individuals in a diverse and changing society. This means adopting a broad conception of
worthwhile learning outcomes and< taking seriously issues of equity and social justice for all.
2. Effective pedagogy engages with valued forms of knowledge. Pedagogy should engage
learners with the big ideas, key skills and processes, modes of discourse, ways of thinking
and practicing, attitudes and relationships, which are the most valued learning processes and
outcomes in particular contexts. They need to understand what constitutes quality, standards
and expertise in different settings.
3. Effective pedagogy recognizes the importance of prior experience and learning. Pedagogy
should take account of what the learner knows already in order for them, and those who
support their learning, to plan their next steps. This includes building on prior learning but
also taking account of the personal and cultural experiences of different groups of learners.
4. Effective pedagogy requires learning to be scaffold. Teachers, trainers and all those,
including peers, who support the learning of others, should provide activities, cultures and
structures of intellectual, social and emotional support to help learners to move forward in
their learning. When these supports are removed the learning needs to be secure.
5. Effective pedagogy needs assessment to be congruent with learning. Assessment should be
designed and implemented with the goal of achieving maximum validity both in terms of
learning outcomes and learning processes. It should help to advance learning as well as
determine whether learning has occurred.
6. Effective pedagogy promotes the active engagement of the learner. A chief goal of learning
should be the promotion of learners independence and autonomy. This involves acquiring a
repertoire of learning strategies and practices, developing positive learning dispositions, and
having the will and confidence to become agents in their own learning.
7. Effective pedagogy fosters both individual and social processes and outcomes. Learners
should be encouraged and helped to build relationships and communication with others for
learning purposes, in order to assist the mutual construction of knowledge and enhance the
achievements of individuals and groups. Consulting learners about their learning and giving
them a voice is both an expectation and a right.
8. Effective pedagogy recognizes the significance of informal learning. Informal learning,
such as learning out of school or away from the workplace, should be recognized as at least
as significant as formal learning and should therefore be valued and appropriately utilized in
formal processes.
9. Effective pedagogy depends on the learning of all those who support the learning of others.
The need for lecturers, teachers, trainers and co-workers to learn continuously in order to
develop their knowledge and skill, and adapt and develop their roles, especially through
practice-based inquiry, should be recognized and supported.

10. Effective pedagogy demands consistent policy frameworks with support for learning as
their primary focus. Organizational and system level policies need to recognize the
fundamental importance of continual learning - for individual, team, organizational and
system success - and be designed to create effective learning environments for all learners.
Posted by rahul khade at 20:55 2 comments:

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a

subject through the experience of solving an open-ended problem. Students learn both thinking
strategies and domain knowledge. The PBL format originated from the medical school of thought,
and is now used in other schools of thought too. It was developed at the McMaster University
Medical School in Canada in the 1960s and has since spread around the world. The goals of
PBL are to help students develop flexible knowledge, effective problem solving skills, self-
directed learning, effective collaboration skills and intrinsic motivation. [1]Problem-based learning is
a style of active learning.

Working in groups, students identify what they already know, what they need to know, and how
and where to access new information that may lead to the resolution of the problem. The role of
the instructor (known as the tutor in PBL) is to facilitate learning by supporting, guiding, and
monitoring the learning process.[2] The tutor must build students' confidence to take on the
problem, and encourage the students, while also stretching their understanding. PBL represents
a paradigm shift from traditional teaching and learning philosophy,[3] which is more often lecture-
based. The constructs for teaching PBL are very different from traditional classroom/lecture
teaching.

Overall principles and characteristics of problem-based learning One distinction

that seems sometimes hard to make is when case-based learning becomes true
problem-based learning. Hay and Katsikitis (2001) offer a distinction that they
used in a study comparing expert and nonexpert tutors. They regarded the two
as broadly similar, but whereas with case-based learning, the problem scenario
came with reading lists and a list of questions to answer and to discuss, problem-
based learning started with just the problem scenario. For students who will only
encounter problem-based learning in a limited number of course units or
modules, then starting with case-based learning and gradually making the
reading lists briefer and the questions for review more open-ended could be a
suitable way to prepare students for the full demands of problembased learning.
MacDonald and Isaacs (2001) offer this distinguishing characteristic of problem-
based learning: The characteristic that distinguishes PBL from other learning
methods centring on what students do, rather than what teaching staff do
(student-centred methods) is that the problem comes before the knowledge (in
the broadest sense) needed to solve or resolve it. (p317) Some key principles of
a problem-based curriculum (after Engel, 1991 & 1992) Active learning Student
take control of their own learning Students pose and answer their own
questions Integrated learning Different disciplines or sub-disciplines are not
studied separately Knowledge, understanding and skills are not seen as distinct
elements but integrated The problem is the focus Every attempt is made to
link the classroom

When observers who are unfamiliar with problem-based learning (PBL) peek into a PBL classroom, they probably
find it very different from what they think of as school. They don't see students seated in rows; instead, they see
classmates working together in small groups or moving from one table of reference materials to another. They
may expect absolute quiet as students listen to the teacher, but they hear the buzz of activity as groups hunt
down needed information, determine how that knowledge will help them solve the problem, and then check to
see if that information points the way to other needed information.

Observers won't instantly spot a teacher at the blackboard or lecturing in the front of the room; rather, they'll find
the teacher at a student's desk commenting on the child's writing, in the corner making notes on class activity, or
just about anyplace else in the room except the front. Seeing this, observers mistakenly may think that PBL
requires very little of the teacher, who just seems to watch students work on their own. This is hardly the case.
When one considers the time required to develop a problem, oversee and assist students throughout the project,
encourage students to be more independent, and assess and evaluate the success of the problem as well as
students' performance, it is clear that the teacher's role is vital for the effectiveness of this learning experience. In
fact, many teachers think the PBL process requires more work than traditional lecturing, although it also offers
greater rewards in exchange.

Step One: Identify Outcomes/Assessments

PBL fits best with process-oriented course outcomes such as collaboration, research,
and problem solving. It can help students acquire content or conceptual knowledge,
or develop disciplinary habits such as writing or communication. After determining
whether your course has learning outcomes that fit with PBL, you will develop
formative and summative assessments to measure student learning. Group contracts,
self/peer-evaluation forms, learning reflections, writing samples, and rubrics are
potential PBL assessments.
Step Two: Design the Scenario
Next you design the PBL scenario with an embedded problem that will emerge
through student brainstorming. Think of a real, complex issue related to your course
content. Its seldom difficult to identify lots of problems in our fields; the key is
writing a scenario for our students that will elicit the types of thinking, discussion,
research, and learning that need to take place to meet the learning outcomes.
Scenarios should be motivating, interesting, and generate good discussion. Check out
the websites below for examples of PBL problems and scenarios.

Problem-Based Learning at University of Delaware

Problem-Based Learning in Biology

Science PBL
Step Three: Introduce PBL
If PBL is new to your students, you can practice with an easy problem, such as a
scenario about long lines in the dining hall. After grouping students and allowing
time to engage in an abbreviated version of PBL, introduce the assignment
expectations, rubrics, and timelines. Then let groups read through the scenario(s).
You might develop a single scenario and let each group tackle it in their own way, or
you could design multiple scenarios addressing a unique problem for each group to
discuss and research.
Step Four: Research
PBL research begins with small-group brainstorming sessions where students define
the problem and determine what they know about the problem (background
knowledge), what they need to learn more about (topics to research), and where they
need to look to find data (databases, interviews, etc.). Groups should write the
problem as a statement or research question. They will likely need assistance. Think
about your own research: without good research questions, the process can be
unguided or far too specific. Students should decide upon group roles and assign
responsibility for researching topics necessary for them to fully understand their
problems. Students then develop an initial hypothesis to test as they research a
solution. Remember: research questions and hypotheses can change after students
find information disconfirming their initial beliefs.
Step Five: Product Performance
After researching, the students create products and presentations that synthesize
their research, solutions, and learning. The format of the summative assessment is
completely up to you. We treat this step like a research fair. Students find resources
to develop background knowledge that informs their understanding, and then they
collaboratively present their findings, including one or more viable solutions, as
research posters to the class.
Step Six: Assessment
During the PBL assessment step, evaluate the groups products and performances.
Use rubrics to determine whether students have clearly communicated the problem,
background, research methods, solutions (feasible and research-based), and
resources, and to decide whether all group members participated meaningfully. You
should consider having your students fill out reflections about their learning
(including what theyve learned about the content and the research process) every
day, and at the conclusion of the process.

Although we presented PBL as steps, it really functions cyclically. For example, you
might teach an economics course and develop a scenario about crowded campus
sidewalks. After the groups have read the scenario, they develop initial hypotheses
about why the sidewalks are crowded and how to solve the problem. If one group
believes they are crowded because they are too narrow and the solution is widening
the sidewalks, their subsequent research on the economic and environmental
impacts might inform them that sidewalk widening isnt feasible. They should jump
back to step four, discuss another hypothesis, and begin a different research path.

This type of process-oriented, self-directed, and collaborative pedagogical strategy

can prepare our students for successful post-undergraduate careers. Is it time to put
PBL to work in your courses?