PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF THE CELL
Quote: "Individual commitment to a group effort:
this is what makes a team work, a
company work, a society work, and a civilization work."
Vince Lombardi
Former Coach, Green Bay Packers
Philosophy
Recent advances in educational reseach substantiate the effectiveness of student-interactive approaches to education. One of the best has been group-based learning as a tool to teach concepts, demonstrate links between related disciplines, relate subjects to the broader social context in which they are applied, and to model team-oriented approaches to the solution of complex problems that stress cooperativity rather than competition.In our course you will work with a group of peers, preparing arguments to support one side of a controversial issue related to molecular biology in society today. Your group will then articipate in a formal debate on the subject before the entire class.
How it will work
First group meeting: Exchange e-mails
and phone numbers.
Establish group ground rules. For example,
Come to class on time.
Come to class prepared.
Do your share of the work responsibly.
Participate fully in group discussions..
Show respect to all members of the group.
Don't dominate the discussions.
Others. You can list as many or as few as the group wants.
Remember, you must also decide on what the consequences are if the above
ground rules are broken. For example, how many times can someone break
a ground rule before the consequence kicks in? What is the consequence?
Choices might include
loss of all group-points for that activity.
loss of only a part of the points for that activity.
expulsion from the group and doing all work alone.
others. The group will decide.
I reserve the right to review your ground rules and modify them, after
discussion with your group, if I feel it is necessary. All members will
sign the ground rules statement that will be handed in to me before the
end of the class at your first group meeting.
These ground rules can be modified if your group feels it is necessary
as the semester progresses.
Grading
The following is a list of the components that will contribute towards the PBL part of your final grade.
Quality of Topic Report:
40%
Quality of Debate:
40%
Quality of Handout:
15%
Peer Evaluation:
5%
Note: Your PBL final grade will contribute 16% towards the final grade in the course.
HOW THE DEBATES WILL WORK
Once we have organized the groups and set group ground rules, I will
assign to your group your group debate topic
AND the side of the debate you are to present. This will be done on
Wednesday, Feb. 23. I will do this randomly, using a lottery system. NO
COMPLAINING IS ALLOWED!! Similarly, we will use a lottery to determine
the date that each
debate will take place. All debates will be on Wednesdays, during our
class period (Consult the Course Calendar).
THE REPORT
The report contributes 40% to the PBL score.
Each individual will be asked to write a report about their group
debate topic, supporting the arguments that your group will use during
the debate itself. This will be due on Wednesday, March 16. You should
work together to gather
information for the report and the debate but must write your own report.
I will give you the opportunity to work as a group during class on Wednesday,
March 2. Other meetings that you may need will need to happen outside of
class time. The report should be about 5-6 pages in length (more if you
feel it is necessary) and carefully referenced in a bibliography at the
end of the report. You do not need to reference in-text.. Do Not Plaguerize
from books or websites, always rewrite the information in your own words.
Also, when referencing a website, include both the URL and the organization
or individual that published that information as part of your bibliography.
Textbook pages must be included if you obtained material from a textbook.
Journal articles must include the volume number and page numbers.
The following items and questions should be included in your report:
What is the topic under debate?
Why is this topic significant to society today?
What is the viewpoint being argued by your
group?
What evidence supports your team's viewpoint?
What evidence have you found that the opposing
side might use and how will you refute it?
Complete references. For websites used, the
entire URL must be cited as well as the name of the organization
posting the information (for example, the
Centers for Disease Control, The United States State Department, or the
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine,
etc.)
Note: All reports must be submitted in hard-copy form to me by the
due date. I will NOT accept reports submitted electronically (for example,
as an e-mail attachment). Reports must be typed. A 10% grade reduction
per day will be imposed upon late reports.
It may prove necessary for your group to meet outside of class. Your
willingness to do this (assuming flexibility in
scheduling by fellow group members) will impact your peer evaluation
score.
GRADING RUBRIC FOR ALL REPORTS
Score Criteria
5
The report not only answers all questions and addresses all topics but
shows depth of understanding and/or additional insights. References are
appropriate and included. The appearance of the report is readable and
neat.
4
The report is accurate on its surface and all questions/topics are answered
or
addressed. References are appropriate and included. The appearance of
the report is readable and neat. Or, report is of score 5 quality but references
are not
included or are not accurately displayed.
3
The report has one or more inaccuracies or something is missing.
However, the references used are appropriate and included. The
appearance of the report is readable and neat.Or, report is of score 4
quality but
references are not included or are not accurately displayed.
2
The report is incomplete or inaccurate. One or more questions or topics
is missed or incorrectly answered. However, the report is readable and
neat. Or
the report is of score 3 quality but references are not included or are
not
accurately displayed.
1
The report shows a lack of effort and is of inferior quality. Topics are
missing,
incorrectly answered, or addressed superficially. Or, the report is of
score 2 quality
but there are missing or inaccurately displayed references. Or, the report
is of
scores 5, 4, 3, or 2, quality but is sloppy, unreadable, and gives evidence
of disdain
for the assignment.
THE HANDOUT
The handout contributes 15% to the PBL grade.
On the day of your debate, your group will be required to provide a
one-page handout to each member of the class that
summarizes your group's opening statement in the debate, supporting
evidence, refutation of the opposing point of view,
and closing statement. You may use both sides of the paper. Suggestions
about the handout include:
Keep the text brief but informative.
If appropriate, include visual aids.
Avoid hand-written documents. Always type
your text.
Remember that the class will use this handout
as a learning tool. Questions related to the debates may be asked on
the examinations.
Instructor Assessment of the Handout will be based upon the following
criteria, evaluated on a scale of 5 (highest) to 1 (lowest).
Conforms to the size limit
Well organized and visually appealing
Provides supporting evidence for the argument
Provides evidence against opposing arguments
No spelling or grammatical errors
If your group so desires, you may post your handout on a personal website and ask the students to print their copies from there. The on-line handout must be available on-line on the day of your debate and you must announce the URL to the class.
THE DEBATE
My evaluation of your debate contributes 40% to your PBL grade.
Each group should attempt to distribute responsibilities equally to
all members. Everyone should be required to speak.
An example of a typical debate "time-line" is shown below.
Side A: Opening Statement. Provides audience with a brief statement regarding your team’s position about the argument along with a statement summarizing the other team’s position and how you will refute it. (2 minutes)
Side B: Opening Statement. Provides audience with a brief statement regarding your team’s position about the argument along with a statement summarizing the other team’s position and how you will refute it. (2 minutes)
Side A: Supporting Evidence for Position. Presents your team’s case to the audience. This stage should include all of the evidence you have collected to support your position. (6 minutes)
Side B: Supporting Evidence for Position. Presents your team’s case to the audience. This stage should include all of the evidence you have collected to support your position. (6 minutes)
3 minutes allowed to prepare for your refutation arguments.
Side A: Refutation Against Opponent’s Position. Attempts to refute the other team’s position. This stage should include all of the evidence you have collected to challenge the opponent’s position. Convince the audience why your team’s view is correct and the opponent’s view is not correct. (6 minutes)
Side B: Refutation Against Opponent’s Position. Attempts to refute the other team’s position. This stage should include all of the evidence you have collected to challenge the opponent’s position. Convince the audience why your team’s view is correct and the opponent’s view is not correct. (6 minutes)
Side A: Closing Statement. Briefly summarize your position, the opposing team’s position, and your rationale for why your team’s position is correct based on the factual and theoretical evidence. (2 minutes)
Side B: Closing Statement. Briefly summarize your position, the opposing team’s position, and your rationale for why your team’s position is correct based on the factual and theoretical evidence. (2 minutes)
Audience Questions to Side A: Audience may ask questions to team or any specific member. (2 minutes)
Audience Questions to Side B: Audience may ask questions to team or any specific member. (2 minutes)
General Discussion as Time Permits.
Audience Decision. Audience rates each team’s performance by secret ballot, handed in to me before they leave. The debaters will not vote.
The following criteria will be used to judge the grade of the group's debate
Quality, clarity, effectiveness, or credibility of opening statement
Quality, clarity, effectiveness, or credibility of argument
Quality, clarity, effectiveness, or credibility of refutation
Quality, clarity, effectiveness, or credibility of closing statement
Quality, clarity, effectiveness, or credibility of responses to questions
Abided by time limits for each debate stage
These criteria will be evaluated on a scale of 5 (highest) to 1 (lowest).
Towards the end of the semester you will be asked to print out the peer
evaluation sheet (linked to the welcome page) and evaluate your group as
indicated. You will hand this in to me. The peer evaluation is worth 5%
of the PBL grade and it is assumed you will get 100% unless otherwise indicated
by your peers.