My Relationship with Curriculum is Blooming

Looking through the jewellers loupe, what is my relationship with curriculum?  This question was posed as my narrative assignment this week and I have spent the better part of the week examining what that means.   I never really thought of myself being in a relationship with curriculum, it’s just something I follow.   I’ve never really thought about it at all in fact.   I just did what I was told to do without questioning it very much, though at times I was frustrated.  When I first started teaching I was told that one of the main roles in being an effective clinical instructor  was the ability to develop critical thought. But I didn’t really understand what that meant.  "Well, how do I do that?" I asked.   "Just ask questions." I was told.   "What kind of questions?".  "Questions that lead the student to the answers".  No wonder I was frustrated,   I didn't  know what it was I was supposed to be doing.   I suppose you could say I was in an unhealthy relationship with the Problem Based Curriculum format that UBC dentistry prescribes to.

Using the magnifying lens format suggested by my prof, I switched the jewellers loupe for my camera lens. Armed with the realization that I am, in fact, in a relationship with curriculum, I set out to get to know this partner of mine better.   Starting with a wide lens, I scan the camera across the PBL landscape taking a broad view of its various components.  This scan sees the  small groups of students, tutor led problems, student focus, responsibility for self learning and the problem solving aspects of PBL.  All these components work together with the intention to create critical thinking, curious professionals.   But to me, it is a blur of information without focus.  I  am zooming in on each of these areas briefly, contemplating its relevance to my role as clinical instructor until creating critical thought catches my eye. I zoom in and fix on it.  This appeals to me as the only aspect of PBL that is relevant to me. 

I am aware that PBL has been touted as the great way to develop critical thinking learners ensuring a new generation of life long learners.  To be honest, though, I never really understood what this meant. Perhaps this is a function of being raised in an educational environment of listen, memorize, regurgitate, move on. Do not question what you are taught.   It didn't matter if I didn't understand it, it would come later. So when my camera lens captured developing critical thought I realized immediately that I needed to get out the macro lens and delve into this.  

A quick library research of critical thought in PBL leads me to the  article "Socrates, problem based learning and critical thinking - a philosophical point of view."  Seriously?  Socrates?  Cool.   I know nothing about this timeless philosopher but am eager to learn how he ties into my world over two thousand years after he's gone.  In this article I learned two very important pieces of information. First, Socrates mother was a midwife.  Now, this may not seem important other than squirrelling that tidbit away for some future game of Trivial Pursuit, but in his case it influenced his perception of knowledge as exampled in the development of his  teacher as midwife metaphor .  To summarize, he equates the development of a thought as the mind going through a painful labour, and that the role of the tutor  in the birth of the thought is to ask questions to aid in the birth of the thought.  These questions are synonymous with a midwives ability to assist the birth of a child.  A good midwife can make a difficult labour easier through good pain control, just as a good teacher, by asking the right questions, can help a student give birth to the thought they are developing.    

The second, and equally important lesson I learned, was that education as I experienced it as a young student, has taken a 180 degree turn.  Teachers, or tutors as they are referred to in PBL, do not dictate information as gospel anymore.  The role of a good tutor is to adopt the Socratic philosophy that the goal is not to teach information, but to make a learner think and  that,  to quote Socrates "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing".   But how does one do this?  How does a tutor make a learner think?

Focussing my lens on this philosophy of developing a thinking mind, my curiosity is piqued.  As clinical instructors we are encouraged to do this, though as someone with a clinical background it is not a skill that comes easily or naturally.  Curious to know if there are any guidelines available to aid in the development of this skill, I find the article "Critical Thinking: The  Art of Socratic Questioning".  This article outlines 8 categories of 'socratic questioning techniques' to encourage critical thinking in learners.  Referring to knowledge as 'thought', the assumption is that one cannot have a thought without the ability to adequately respond to queries posted by the tutor.  This series of questions are meant to determine the level of knowledge the learner has, while assisting them in developing their thought. These 8 categories assume that thoughts (or answers, ideas, beliefs etc) do not come out of thin air but have a background to them.  

The first question one might ask could be ‘“What is the Purpose or Goal of your thought”  If I look at this from a PBL perspective, I would ask “What is PBL trying to achieve as a curriculum approach?”   To this I might answer  “to create engaged and curious learners”  which would naturally lead to other questions to flesh out a deeper  understanding of the thought.  This next  question might ask the learner to demonstrate that they understand that there are other alternatives that have been explored or used.  An example of this might be “Why is PBL the best approach to achieve this goal?” to which  I  might compare it to the weaknesses of the ‘traditional’ teacher/student dynamic. The questions continue, attempting to aid the student breaking the question down so that they are able to fully own the thought.  Using the remaining 6 categories of questions I will show how I applied the critical thought process to myself in my effort to become more familiar with PBL.  Many of these questions I do not have the answers to, demonstrating that my relationship with PBL is still in its infancy stage. 

3) Information, data and experience.  Questions around this ask the learner what information they have to support the thought or idea they have.  “Why was the traditional method not working?” “Why did educators entertain PBL”  In some of my readings I noted that McMaster University Medical school was the first medical school to use PBL back in the 60’s, so I would be interested to learn why was this switch was made and if it has met with good success. 

 4) Inferences and conclusions:  In order to fully understand something, one should be able to make inferences from it.   “How can we conclude that PBL has been working?”  “What evidence is there that it is effective?” 

5)Concepts and Ideas "One must understand the concepts of the thought or problem in order to  understand the answer. 

“How does Socratic Philosophy work into this?”  What does the Teacher as Midwife metaphor mean?”

6) Assumptions:  All thoughts require assumptions.  It does not come out of thin air.  “Can we assume that students will be active participants in this?”

7) Implications and consequences: If one is to fully understand something, they should understand the consequences of it.  “What if it doesn’t work for some students?”  “How can we make this approach applicable in other fields besides medicine and dentistry and other sciences?”  “Does this work in say, English Literature?”

8) Viewpoints and perspectives:

This assumes that all thought takes place in a framework or viewpoint.

“While this may look nice on paper, can it work realistically?"

These are just some of the questions that have been raised for me as I review the two articles to date in a bid to understand my relationship with curriculum better.  Clearly there are many questions that I have not yet asked, and answers that I have given are still skeletal and weak.  What I have realized in this process, however, is that in taking my lens and looking at curriculum I have turned myself into both a teacher and a student.  My relationship with curriculum is still new, but at least I now know that I have one with it.

References

Paul, R., Elder, Linda “Critical Thinking:The Art of Socratic Questioning” Journal of Development Education 2007 31:1 pg 36-37

Wang SY, Tsai JC, Chiang HC, Lai CS, Lin HJ., “Socrates, problem-based learning and critical thinking --- a philosophic point of view” Kaohsiung J Med Sci. 2008 Mar;24(3 Suppl):S6-13.

Wintonyk, T “Problem Based Learning - Classical Antiquity comes of Age” UBC Dentistry Impressions  Fall 2010 pg 10-14  http://www.dentistry.ubc.ca/features/problem_based_learning.asp