Maida Mustafic

Dispositions for Collaborative Problem Solving

In this chapter we discuss student dispositions toward an emerging domain called “collaborative problem solving” (CPS), recently assessed by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in the field trial and in the main study. Here, “dispositions” refers to the attitudes to and experiences of collaboration seen emerging in the international PISA survey data in 15-year-olds. For the field trial’s noncognitive measures, nine CPS-related constructs were developed for the student and teacher questionnaires. Information was collected on the types of collaborative activities and the support that was available, in and out of the classroom, as well as on student experiences of and attitudes to collaboration. We provide a description of the constructs and demonstrate how their development was related to present and past PISA cognitive measures in problem solving and collaborative problem solving.

Shifts in the Assessment of Problem Solving

In recent decades, the types of problems encountered in daily life have changed considerably. In particular, the technology-based society of today increasingly requires people to deal with dynamically changing, intransparent, and complex problems that cannot be solved only by applying factual knowledge. Moreover, in education and at work, such complex problems often need to be addressed collaboratively. Problem solving skills belong to the skills needed to successfully master such problems and are therefore considered to be crucial in the twenty-first century, but we can differentiate between problem solving on an individual level and collaborative problem solving. In the first part of this chapter, we provide insight into individual complex problem solving (CPS) research, with a special focus on its assessment. Specifically, we elaborate on different computer-based approaches to the measurement of CPS and their benefits and limitations. On the basis of the results of various empirical studies, we describe to which extent the CPS assessment has an added value in explaining the scholastic achievement and offer insights into a particular development of the assessment of this skill in large-scale educational contexts. Specifically, we elaborate on the assessment of CPS in the most influential large-scale project worldwide – the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) – and illustrate the process by describing example tasks. Further, we elaborate on how research on CPS has expanded towards the conceptually related skill of collaborative problem solving (ColPS) and discuss specific challenges in its assessment. With respect to the recent inclusion of ColPS in large-scale assessments, we present the assessment approach of another large-scale worldwide project – The Assessment and Teaching of Twenty-first Century Skills (ATC21S) – and describe how ColPS was assessed in the PISA 2015 cycle. Finally, we outline the importance of problem solving concepts in general and CPS specifically for future research, and discuss open research questions in this field.

Complex Problem-Solving in a Changing World: Bridging Domain-Specific and Transversal Competence Demands in Vocational Education

The general aim of today’s vocational and professional education is the preparation of individuals for the world of work. In this chapter, the following issues are explored: (1) current trends in cognitive skill assessment, (2) benefits of relating them to well-established approaches to learning and instruction in vocational education and (3) recent developments in (large-scale) assessment of competencies in that education sector. More specifically, assessment approaches are studied which originate in cognitive psychology that utilize computer-simulated microworlds for the estimation of skills directed at an individuals’ interaction with complex problem situations (in which complex problem-solving – or CPS – competence is needed). We inquire whether and how vocational and professional education and the accompanying research can utilize some of the underlying principles and problem features from CPS research and vice versa, such as the inclusion of an assessment directed at the procedural aspects of competence, the inclusion of so-called wicked problems in assessment or the role of domain-specific knowledge in solving complex problems. To this end, we present positive examples from different areas of application in vocational education, highlight benefits of an integration of insights for both competence-based vocational and professional education and complex problem-solving research and discuss the potential and need for future research.

Hochschuldidaktik als quantitativ-empirische Wissenschaft

Fragen der Gestaltung effektiver Hochschullehre werden mehr und mehr mit den Mitteln der empirischen Lehr-Lern-Forschung untersucht und in internationalen Fachzeitschriften mit Peer Review publiziert. Diese Forschung zeigt, dass es Gestaltungsprinzipien fur Lehre gibt, die ihre Wirkung unabhangig von Hochschultypen, Studiengangen und Studienphasen entfalten. Das vorliegende Buch gibt einen anwendungsorientierten Uberblick uber die empirische Forschung zu diesen Gestaltungsprinzipien und ihren Wirkmechanismen. Eine komplexe Kompetenz wie die Fahigkeit zu effektivem Lehren erfordert sog. deliberate practice, also Jahre der praktischen Ubung und des gezielten Arbeitens an den eigenen Schwachen. Die Teilnahme an hochschuldidaktischen Weiterbildungen erhoht die Lehrkompetenz von Dozierenden umfassend, wobei insbesondere Weiterbildungsmasnahmen mit sog. microteaching-Methoden effektiv sind, also mit Video- und Kollegenfeedback zu den Details der Durchfuhrung einer Unterrichtseinheit.