Personal Perspectives

Running head: PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE PAPER

Personal Perspective Paper

Dennis Pasco

University of Phoenix

MBA/500 - Foundations of Problem Based Learning

Week 2 - January 02, 2006

Personal Perspective Paper

The University of Phoenix distributes a complete collection of learning tools, knowledge and forms for students to access in order to help them with completion of the Master of Business Administration program. The University of Phoenix assortment of online resources include the rEsource site; the Learning Team Toolkit, which is the students' "gateway to materials that will help achieve greater professional competence as a member and leader or work teams" (Learning Team Toolkit, 2005); and a problem-based learning approach. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the benefits of these three major components of The University of Phoenix's Teaching/learning model.

The Value of rEsource

From the time I first logged on, I knew that rEsource would be a valuable tool. REsource helps to alleviate a great deal of concerns for students who have busy lives. Working students, like myself, generally do not want to, or do not have the time to be in attendance at a specific period of time during the day that a traditional school requires. Because rEsource is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, it is a tremendous help.

The rEsource also offers help with becoming a more informed writer; with an online library, learning team tools, and tutorials. Having access to rEsource throughout the course of the MBA program will be very convenient and will be an invaluable tool for completing my Masters of Business Administration degree.

The Value of Learning Teams

Learning teams are at there best used when the participants share common goals. Because of these common goals, team members can learn to easily share information. By focusing on a single output, teams can develop a sense of common purpose and focus. By working together over an extended period, they develop a rhythm, common identity, and trust, which vastly improves their ability to build on each other's ideas and solve business and technical problems. (McDermott, 1999)

The statements are as true in an educational environment as they are in the workforce. Teams can be a great tools for learning. In order to learn, people need a safe environment in which to reflect and think about the subject matter. They need to be able to contemplate on their experience and its implications in order to develop new ideas. When they develop trust, people can feel safe enough to share their thinking, the reasons behind their conclusions, and the questions they have about their conclusions. When they take time to collectively reflect on their experience, they can build on each other's ideas, and deepen the richness of their thinking and insights. (McDermott, 1999).

The Value of Problem-Based Learning

Problem-Based Learning was first established as part of the education of physicians in medical school and has been an educational institution at Southern Illinois University for over 30 years. (U.S. Department of Energy, 2005). It is amazing how slowly some institutions are to accept new ideas. It has been 30 years since the beginnings of PBL, and I have only just encountered it since attending the University of Phoenix. According