Acquiring Self-Knowledge for Career Development. ERIC Digest No. 175. Although this may seem unfair to the student who has worked hard in school, it should not be a surprise that employers value experienced workers. Experience is integral to knowing and understanding oneself and how one relates to different situations, circumstances, and roles. The problem must be content relevant and represent a real situation faced by an individual, group, company, or community.
Students work in teams discussing alternatives and examining possible solutions.
Students share information, opinions, and ideas with others based on what they have learned through experience. Students write plans, reports, and other forms of work documentation to include in their portfolios of accomplishments and achievements. Since students are the real problem solvers, their experiences in the process broaden their understanding, not only of the complexities of the problem, but of the effect a given solution might have on various stakeholders. Through such experiences, students learn to assess their own stances on the issues in question, their specific interests in the issues, their abilities in relation to the tasks of problem solving, and the appeal of various jobs dedicated to those issues. In a society where change is constant and teamwork is a way of life at work, the lessons learned through involvement in problem-based learning are essential for students' career development.