• 1. Sixty-three K-12 teachers completed a minimum of 56 hours in Problem-Based Learning Professional Development activities. Twenty-one of those went on in the program to complete another forty hours of professional development activities specifically in creating and developing materials for classroom use with the PBL methodology.
• 2. Twenty-one K-12 teachers comprised seven PBL materials development teams with an objective to create PBL instructional cases complete with classroom resources and materials. The seven teams completed sixty-eight cases.
• 3. One hundred thirty-six students directly participated in the professional development activities for teachers allowing the teachers an opportunity to practice the PBL methodology and to pilot developed instructional materials. Students enjoyed the role of "teaching their teachers" something new and responded positively to the methodology as a more interesting way to learn science concepts.

• 1. The best of the challenges was the overwhelming response received from teachers to the professional development component. The original intent was to have fifty teachers participate but, with additional funding from Eisenhower Professional Development Program, sixty-three teachers were accommodated. The goal was to have six teacher teams to work on materials development and the response allowed for seven teams to be created. The challenge was providing the PBL expert staff, sufficient stipends for the teachers, and the additional program management time created by the enthusiastic response. This challenge was met with the additional funding, creative use of professional staff time, and the extreme dedication of everyone involved in the program.
• 2. The second of the challenges is that with the overwhelming response from teachers and their enthusiasm in implementing the methodology, there is a constant struggle to stay behind the multiple evaluation surveys from students and teachers regarding the use of the methodology and the materials. The professional development evaluations are quite manageable but on any given day, fifteen different teachers might implement a PBL problem-case in four different classes. With an average of 25 students per class this can result in the collection of 1500 surveys from students in one day. The possibility of using university students as research interns to enter data is being explored but this is an area that needs additional attention and support at this time.
• 3. The third challenge is sustaining the program activities and teacher support. While the number of enthusiastic participants has increased yearly, the program staff and funding has not. We continue to seek additional funding sources and creatively stretch the existing funding to meet the current needs.

• 1. The Center of Excellence for Research, Teaching, and Learning (CERTL) at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine has a web site created by teachers who have participated in the long-term and continuous professional development activities in Problem-Based Learning (PBL). While parts of the web site are limited to registered access participants, other domains are public. To visit the site, go to www.learning.koz.com. There is information about professional development opportunities in problem-based learning and there is public access to the media center located at the top left of the screen. In the media center are dozens of teacher-reviewed links to science and mathematics sites. This is a terrific resource for teachers who would like to integrate the technology using quality web sites for students to visit but do not have time to surf for these sites. These web sites have been reviewed by teachers and found to have significant value for classroom use.
• 2. The Center of Excellence for Research, Teaching, and Learning (CERTL) at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine is now offering customized professional development programs in Problem-Based Learning for K-12 and beyond teaching professionals. These programs are 3-8 days in length. The programs can be delivered to a school or school system locally or participants may attend programming at the Center of Excellence for Research, Teaching, and Learning in Winston-Salem, N.C. Professional staff at the CERTL will work with staff development specialists to customize a program for described needs. Professional development sessions include: - The Background and Philosophy of PBL: What and Why - Facilitation Skills - Integrating PBL With Your Curriculum - Developing PBL Instructional Materials - PBL and Educational Technology - PBL and Authentic Assessments Fees vary and are based on the number of participants, the length of the program, and location of the program. The CERTL is a non-profit organization and has the flexibility to create programs designed for the specific needs of teacher groups and to cost out expenses accordingly. Fees include an appropriate number of the CERTL's professional staff to deliver the programming, all instructional materials, a PBL manual, and registered access to PBL teaching materials through the CERTL web site. Fees do not include travel and daily living expenses for the professional staff. For more information on customizing a CERTL program in Problem-Based Learning for teachers in your area contact the Center by phone at (336)716-3993 or e-mail the program director at alambros@wfubmc.edu.

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