Abstract
Thanks to its advantages in improving the learning, the understanding and the performance of learners, the interactive simulations have become among the main tools recommended by many researches as an alternative to the traditional pedagogical tools. Indeed, the forms and the objectives of the integration of simulations in teaching and learning process are varied depending on the pedagogical needs of the user, as well as according to the adopted learning methods and activities. In this contribution we aim to study the impact of problem-based learning (PBL) using interactive simulation, on the understanding of the concepts related to the rotational equilibrium, taught in common core science level. The concepts covered by this study are force and inventory, torque and Newton's second law for rotation. We first propose a selection grid to help teachers to choose the appropriate simulation product for a given problem-based learning activity, we later perform the experience to compare the performance of the students in the control group (who solve the problem using traditional method) and the students in the experimental group (who use the simulation tool) based on the pre-test and post-test methodology. The simulation tool used in the experimental part is determined using the grid that we have developed. Obtained results have shown that the use of interactive simulation has a positive effect on student's conceptual understanding, if it was properly integrated into an educational context.
Highlights
Since 2002, all Moroccan school teaching cycles have recorded many advances in pedagogical plan: the curricula have been revised and new pedagogical orientations have been adopted, such as the competency-based approach (CBA)
The use of problem-based learning method and computer simulation tools in a single learning strategy provokes a kind of integrative learning, that is to say that PBL method and computer simulation can support each other to achieve common learning goals
Physical science learning is a process that is basically based on observation and experimentation, the problem-based learning method integrating information and communication technologies (ICT) is considered among the solutions of low performance problem
Summary
Since 2002, all Moroccan school teaching cycles have recorded many advances in pedagogical plan: the curricula have been revised and new pedagogical orientations have been adopted, such as the competency-based approach (CBA). The PBL method has shown a great consistency after being integrated with ICT, given that the use of ICT can enrich and activate this type of learning, and at the same time, this learning method highlights more clearly the benefits of ICT In confirmation of this idea, Lebrun [11] considers that ICT can contribute to the development of pedagogies only if it is accompanied by pedagogical method based on more incentive and interactive methods, being supported by new roles for teachers and learners, and is finalized in the development of social skills and professional. Simulation as a principal pillar of using the ICT in education is not far from confirming the same idea; de Jong et al [13] have shown that learning by means of simulation is more effective in an environment which offers possibilities of investigation and discovery
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