COEVOLUTION - BIOL 508, Fall 2002

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Group Learning

Why group learning, problem solving, and student centered learning
rather than a traditional lecture course?

1. Educational advantages

In student centered learning, students work in small groups, tutor one another, and learn to depend on one another rather than depending exclusively on the authority of the teacher. Students learn to construct knowledge as it is constructed in the academic disciplines, and they learn the craft of interdependence.

Many agree that at present there is too much passive learning experience (lectures) and few opportunities for active learning. In the traditional teacher-centered learning classroom the teacher is solely responsible for what the student is expected to learn. The teacher's usual role is to dispense information in lectures, assign readings, and provide demonstrations. The student is a passive recipient.

Active learning is not something that is done for students; it is something that learners do for themselves. In student-centered learning, the student learns to determine what s/he needs to know; the student 'learns to learn.' Groups discover for themselves what new information they need to acquire in order to master some topic or solve some problem. Problem solving is what must be done when the answer to a question or problem can not simply be retrieved from memory. This is the way knowledge is gained in "the real world."

In active learning, students take responsibility for their own learning. This fosters a cooperative rather than competitive learning environment and stimulates intellectual curiosity in students. Faculty in a classroom of active learners can be viewed as facilitators of learning rather than disseminators of knowledge.

2. This process helps meets the stated goals of California State Univ. system (Spring 1997), which listed the following specific abilities expected of CSU graduates:

a. Communicate effectively, through a variety of means

b. Read analytically and think critically at a high level

c. Write clearly

d. Acquire substantive in-depth command over one or more fields of study

e. Locate, analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information

f. Integrate knowledge across discipline boundaries

g. Make both qualitative and quantitative assessments

h. Participate effectively in a democratic society

i. Work effectively in group settings with people different from oneself.

 The CSU statement also included the following remarks: "We will assure that our graduates possess a certain breadth and depth of knowledge together with a certain level of skills. CSU will facilitate other techniques of active learning such as collaborative learning, problem solving, and use of interactive technology. We will require that each student be responsible for creating an academic plan, one which will encourage students to take a more active role in their own learning, including self-paced and self-directed study." 3. These skills also meet the goals of SDSU College of Sciences (Spring 1997), which identified the main attributes that any Bachelor's Degree holder should possess: a. Mental maturity and critical thinking

b. Solid background in the fundamental principles of the discipline

c. Sense of self, community, and the environment

d. Ability to communicate

e. Ability to work on a team

 The Dean of the College of Sciences stated that "as students progress into their junior year they should learn to accept more responsibility for their own education. Students must have basic technological skills (word processing, spreadsheets, web browsing, library searches, and e-mail). Almost without exception, corporations approach a problem with a team of people bringing different and appropriate skills to the solution. University graduates must have the skills necessary to work successfully on such project teams. Individual competence must be complemented by strong cooperative skills."