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Digital Technologies as a Change Agent in Problem-Based Activities: A Comparison of Online and Campus-Based PBL in Swedish Firefighter Training

Digital Technologies as a Change Agent in Problem-Based Activities: A Comparison of Online and Campus-Based PBL in Swedish Firefighter Training

Robert Holmgren
Copyright: © 2017 |Pages: 17
ISBN13: 9781522509295|ISBN10: 1522509291|EISBN13: 9781522509301
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-0929-5.ch004
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MLA

Holmgren, Robert. "Digital Technologies as a Change Agent in Problem-Based Activities: A Comparison of Online and Campus-Based PBL in Swedish Firefighter Training." Adult Education and Vocational Training in the Digital Age, edited by Viktor Wang, IGI Global, 2017, pp. 58-74. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0929-5.ch004

APA

Holmgren, R. (2017). Digital Technologies as a Change Agent in Problem-Based Activities: A Comparison of Online and Campus-Based PBL in Swedish Firefighter Training. In V. Wang (Ed.), Adult Education and Vocational Training in the Digital Age (pp. 58-74). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0929-5.ch004

Chicago

Holmgren, Robert. "Digital Technologies as a Change Agent in Problem-Based Activities: A Comparison of Online and Campus-Based PBL in Swedish Firefighter Training." In Adult Education and Vocational Training in the Digital Age, edited by Viktor Wang, 58-74. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2017. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0929-5.ch004

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Abstract

This study deals with how problem-based activities were affected when digital technologies were integrated with PBL (Problem-Based Learning) in Swedish firefighter training. Based on socio-cultural perspectives on learning and a comparative distance-campus approach, the instructor and student roles and PBL activities were explored. Interviews with instructors and students from the two study modes were carried out at the beginning and end of the two-year training program. The results showed that, compared to the campus-based PBL, the problem-solving processes in the online PBL activities were characterized by greater individual responsibility, more authentic tasks and a clearer focus on literacy. Furthermore, the instructor's role as a teaching subject expert changed in favor of a tutoring approach, and the distance students developed a more self-directed learning approach compared to the campus students. The follow-up study in the latter part of the training program showed that the extended technology integration resulted in phases of both dissemination and normalization. The introduction of online PBL affected both the teaching design and educational discussions throughout the program. However, the prevailing teaching culture and the pedagogical and technological shortcomings of instructors unused to distance teaching resulted in a gradual normalization of the online PBL.

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