IEMA

Tools

Problem-based Leadership Development
Over sixty years ago, Charles Gragg, one of the originators of case teaching at the Harvard Business School, stated: “Education in the professions should prepare students for action.”As teachers of management, we have long shared Gragg’s facesvalue concerning the importance of this purpose of education. Indeed, our initial interest in problem-based learning (henceforth referred to in this volume as ‘PBL’) during the 1980s resulted from our own search for approaches to teaching and learning that met this criterion for education in the professions. Our subsequent experience using PBL management education programs in North America, Australia and Asia reinforces our belief in its efficacy as an approach that prepares ‘managers for action.’

PBL -- problem-based learning -- is an innovative learning-centered approach to leadership development. Unlike the case method which focuses primarily on developing analytical skills, PBL provides equal emphasis to learning skills in application of knowledge. This website offers useful tools for learning about the use of PBL in leadership development including:
  • General information about PBL
  • Sample PBL materials used in leadership development
  • Computer simulations those are problem-based
  • Assessment tools or rubrics
  • Workshop resources used in training instructors in the use of PBL
  • Journal articles and conference papers on PBL written by Philip Hallinger
Leaders of all types of organizations in this era of global change need to be able to "manage for action." They need to be able to analyze and also to "do". Both prospective and practicing managers should be able to demonstrate the capacity to:
  • Analyze and define problems thoroughly and systematically;
  • Search for knowledge that is relevant to the problem from formal and informal sources;
  • Consider the contextual conditions that impact on the use of that knowledge;
  • Identify and develop solutions that are well-informed, practical, and justifiable in light of the information and assumptions provided;
  • Enact their solutions and experience the consequences;
  • Reflect productively on what they learned from their experience.

PBL seeks to foster the capacity to ‘manage for action’ in several ways including:

  • Placing students in self-managing project teams through which they are able to experience a variety of leadership and team member roles;
  • Transforming the classroom into a project environment in which students set goals, manage and delegate work tasks, collaborate in finding relevant knowledge resources, address team problems, and achieve results under tight time constraints;
  • Using this project environment as a ‘crucible’ in which students experience the frustrations, pressures, joys and other emotional states that characterize the work context of the manager;
  • Requiring students to implement, to the greatest extent possible, the conclusions and recommendations that they draw from their problem analysis.
For more detailed information please see articles referenced and available for download below or books we have published on problem-based leadership development.

Problem-Based Learning: Workshop Materials

Professor Hallinger has conducted numerous workshops for university faculty members and trainers on the use of problem-based learning in higher education and in leadership development. He has conducted these multi-day workshops preparing faculty to use PBL in the classroom in the USA, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, China, and Thailand. Below are workshop materials used to prepare faculty to use PBL. Note that these are representative materials that have been adapted for different settings and different disciplines.
  • Introduction Seminar
    • PowerPoint Presentation Handout 1 Download
    • PowerPoint Presentation Handout 2 Download
  • Introducing a framework and first steps
  • Designing Your PBL Project
    • Powerpoint Presentation Handout Download
    • References Chapter 3 Materials Download
  • Developing More Powerful Assessments of Student Learning in PBL
    • Powerpoint Presentation Handout 1 Download
    • Powerpoint Presentation Handout
  • More Materials for Rubric
    • Assessment Rubric for Evaluating the Feasibility of a Business Plan Competition Download
    • Assessment Rubric for Sample Final Exam Essay Questions Download
    • Assessment Rubric for Memo Writing Download  
    • Assessment Rubric for a Personal Case Study Project Download
    • Assessment Rubric for an Individual Consulting Presentation Download
    • Assessment Rubric for an Oral Presentation Download
    • Assessment Rubric for a Reflective Essay Download
    • Assessment Rubric Template Download
    • Assessment Rubric for a Term Paper Download  
    • Assessment Rubric for Team Participation Download
    • Assessment Rubric for a Thesis Download
Papers by Philip Hallinger on Problem-based Learning
  • Hallinger, P.(Accepted for publication in 2009). Learning to lead change: Assessment of learning results. Educational Review. Download
  • Hallinger, P., & Bridges, E. (2007). Developing problem-based learning materials. In P. Hallinger & E. Bridges (Eds.), A problem-based approach for management education: Preparing managers for action (pp.45-68). Netherlands: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4020-5756-4. Download
  • Hallinger,P.(2007).Learning to lead change (ch. 8). In Hallinger, P., & Bridges, E. (eds). Problem-based management education: Developing “managers for action.” Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. Download
  • Hallinger,P.(2005, April).Integrating learning technologies and problem-based learning: A framework and case study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), Montreal. Download
  • Hallinger,P.,Blackwood,A., & Tannathai,P.(2004).Implementing problem-based learning in Thai higher education: A case study of challenges and strategies. Chulalongkorn Educational Review, 6-20. Download
  • Hallinger, P. & Kantamara, P. (2001). Learning to lead global changes across cultures: Designing a computer-based simulation for Thai school leaders. Journal of Educational Administration, 39(3), 197-220. Download
  • Hallinger, P., Crandall, D., & Ng Foo Seong, D. (2001). Making change happen: A simulation for learning to lead change. The Learning Organization. Download
  • Bridges, E., & Hallinger, P. (1999). The use of cases in problem based learning. The Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership, 2(2), 4-13.
  • Hallinger, P. & Bridges, E. (1997). Problem-based leadership development: Preparing educational leaders for changing times. Journal of School Leadership, 7, 1-15. Download
  • Bridges, E. & Hallinger, P. (1997). Using problem-based learning to prepare educational leaders. Peabody Journal of Education, 72(2), 131-146. Download
  • Bridges, E. & Hallinger, P. (1996). Problem-based learning in leadership development. New directions in teaching in higher education, 68, 53-62.
  • Hallinger, P. & Bridges, E. (1994). Problem-based learning in educational administration: Defining its major features for application. Australian Studies in Educational Administration, 59, 15-24.
  • Leithwood, K. & Hallinger, P. (1993). Cognitive perspectives on educational administration. Educational Administration Quarterly, 24(3), 296-301.
  • Bridges, E. & Hallinger, P. (1991). Problem-based learning: A promising approach for preparing educational administrators. UCEA Review, 32(3), 3-7.
  • Hallinger, P. & McCary, M. (1991). Using a problem-based approach to instructional leadership development. Journal of Staff Development, 12(2), 6-12.