Aprendizagem baseada em problemas como estratégia para desenvolver as habilidades de comunicação e colaboração na educação a distância

Abstract

Distance Education (DE) is still marked by the use of traditional teaching methods, a virtual learning environment with programmed instruction that does not meet the essential skills of the 21st century, represented by the 4Cs (critical thinking; collaboration; communication and creativity). The traditional presentation of content, with an emphasis on individual activities and assessment questionnaires, tends to generate repetitive activities with little practical application and which are far removed from the essential skills of the 4Cs. Maintaining these practices makes us reflect on the development of skills needed by future managers, such as communication and collaboration. From this perspective, the active methodology of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) can enable immersion in the context of an administrator's work, by solving problems inherent in the organizational environment. With this in mind, this research aims to contribute to the problem by pointing to the use of PBL as an efficient alternative for developing communication and collaboration skills. Thus, this research sought to answer the following guiding question: Can Problem-Based Learning contribute to the development of skills related to communication and collaboration among students on the Public Administration course, in distance learning mode? Based on this question, the research had the following general objective: To analyze the skills related to communication and collaboration, based on PBL in the EaD Public Administration course at UFRN. In order to achieve this objective, we sought to: a) find out the current situation of students in relation to communication and collaboration skills. b) plan the implementation of a course in the UFRN EaD Public Administration course, together with the teacher-trainer, based on the stages of PBL; c) mediate and apply, together with the course tutors, the stages and activities based on PBL; d) analyze student participation in the course. The theoretical basis of the dissertation covers the fundamentals of Distance Education, Communication and Collaboration and Problem-Based Learning, as well as the presentation of a Systematic Literature Review. The methodology is of a qualitative approach, of an applied nature, with exploratory and descriptive research objectives, with nuances of action research. The instruments used were observation, questionnaires, and interviews. As an educational product, the research presented a teaching guide with the sequences of moments in the PBL learning cycle applied in an e-learning course. Based on the application of the PBL learning cycle, together with the proposed activities, the data was analyzed by thematic categories, revealing that PBL provided the development of cognitive processes for solving real problems, autonomy, and interaction between students and group work, requiring communication and collaboration skills. In this way, the research helped to reflect on the inclusion of new pedagogical practices in distance education, allowing students to have meaningful experiences in this modality.