Problem-based Learning Course Research Articles

Physical Assessment Experience in a Problem-Based Learning Course

To evaluate the impact of a physical-assessment learning experience implemented in the problem-based learning (PBL) format of the third year of a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) program. Students enrolled in a PBL course completed survey instruments to measure knowledge and confidence before and after participating in the learning experience. A simulation stethoscope was used to teach students abnormal pulmonary and cardiovascular sounds in 1-hour sessions for each of 12 PBL groups. The 92 students enrolled in the PBL course completed pre- and post-experience survey instruments. Students' scores on knowledge questions increased significantly (p < 0.0001) from 40.4% ± 11.4% at baseline to 62.5% ± 13.7% and 63.1 ± 11.6%, respectively, on the 2 sets of post-experience questions. Students scored a median of 3 or 4 on a 5-point Likert scale after a learning experience on questions measuring confidence. Use of a simulation stethoscope in a physical-assessment learning experience increased pharmacy students' knowledge in performing pulmonary and cardiovascular assessment techniques.

The Effect of Problem-Based Learning With Cooperative-Learning Strategies in Surgery Clerkships

Cooperative learning is used often as part of the problem-based learning (PBL) process. But PBL does not demand that students work together until all individuals master the material or share the rewards for their work together. A cooperative learning and assessment structure was introduced in a PBL course in 10-week surgery clerkship, and the difference was evaluated between this method and conventional PBL in an acute abdominal pain module. An experimental design was used. No significant differences in achievement were found between the study and control group. Both the study and control group students who scored low on the pretest made the greatest gains at the end of the education. Students in the cooperative learning group felt that cooperation helped them learn, it was fun to study and expressed satisfaction, but they complained about the amount of time the groups had to work together, difficulties of group work, and noise during the sessions. This study evaluated the impact of a cooperative learning technique (student team learning [STL]) in PBL and found no differences. The study confirms that a relationship exists between allocated study time and achievement, and student's satisfaction about using this technique.

Problem-Based Learning in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Education: The Shanghai Hybrid

A new hybrid course was designed for the practice of oral and maxillofacial surgery education, which included a problem-based learning (PBL) preclinical course and a 1-year clinical rotation under supervision. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of this hybrid course. Eighty-seven students were included from 2006 to 2008. Of these students, 43 received PBL courses and 44 received traditional lecture-based courses. All the students took multiple-choice examinations before and after their clinical rotations. A self-assessment questionnaire was completed after completion of all preclinical courses. At the end of the 1-year clinical rotation, all students were asked to take the clinical skill test. We used t tests to assess the statistical significance of any changes in their scores. Students' scores on the multiple-choice examination showed significant improvement after taking both the PBL courses and the traditional lecture-based courses. The PBL group had better results regarding their overall scores than did the traditional group. The PBL group received higher scores in the "case analysis" and "operational skills" categories. The self-assessment showed that PBL students had more initiative to study in the library, a greater inclination toward teamwork, and more self-confidence before clinical practice. PBL courses combined with supervised clinical rotation were shown to improve students' operative skill, enhance their ability to perform case analysis, and improve their self-confidence. However, to determine the long-term effect after graduation, further series of testing should be performed in these students over the next few years.

Filling in the Distance Between Us: Group Metacognition During Problem Solving in a Secondary Education Course

While a body of research exists on individual metacognition, research on reflective communities is just beginning. This study generated a framework for conceptualizing metacognition in groups by describing likely components of group metacognition. I focused on a group of five preservice science teachers engaged in problem-based learning (PBL). The purpose of the PBL course was to help students gain useful concepts from the learning sciences to apply to teaching. I investigated forms of metacognition and the role reflective discourse played during the learning process. The group and facilitator were videotaped during PBL sessions. A segment of video to study further was identified through interaction analysis. I analyzed the discourse of this segment of the transcribed group discussion, and I examined the group’s final paper. Supplementary data sources included the interaction analysis transcript of the full 8-h videotape and, specifically, the comments the group made about the resources they used to solve the problem. Categories of group metacognition were identified, claims proposed, and recombined or rejected until saturation. I identified three components of group metacognition that helped the group members solve the instructional redesign problem: (1) metasocial awareness about other member’s expertise, (2) monitoring of understanding, and (3) monitoring of process. Future research directions and instructional implications are discussed.

Student Tutors for Problem‐Based Learning in Dental Hygiene: A Study of Tutor Actions

This case study illuminates contextual factors related to the tutor experience when senior students served as tutors for sophomore students in a problem-based learning (PBL) course in a baccalaureate dental hygiene program. Data were collected using various sources and methods. Tutors and administrators were interviewed, those tutored completed an anonymous questionnaire, the tutorial process and tutor training sessions were observed, and related documents were examined. Data analysis included open and axial coding, creation of tutor profiles, and identification of patterns. Tutor training included experiencing the PBL student role, attending class, and weekly seminar sessions facilitated by a tutor supervisor. Analysis revealed that tutor behaviors could be distinguished by the nature of intended actions (e.g., telling, asking, clarifying, acknowledging), emphasis of comments (process, content, social), and facilitation style (directive, suggestive, empowering). Patterns in tutor behavior and attitudes emerged related to comfort or growth and persistence or lenience. Differences in tutor understanding and perception of their role and the purpose of PBL appeared to influence the role the tutor assumed. Other factors that influenced tutor behavior included tutor intentions, tutor training, and environmental factors (e.g., time). The study, incorporating Fishbein's integrative model, suggests points of influence on tutor behaviors.

Promoting Meaningful Learning through Video Production-Supported PBL

This paper reports on a design-based research for designing, implementing, and refi ning a problem-based learning (PBL) course on educational digital video at the University of Lapland’s Faculty of Education. The course builds on a combination of problem solving in small group tutorial sessions and realizing a practical hands-on project during which the students design and produce educational videos about the topics they are studying. The research has a dual goal of refi ning the PBL course and designing a pedagogical model that combines video production with PBL to support students’ meaningful learning. The data were collected through a questionnaire for the course students, audio recordings of students’ interviews, and students’ performance results. Results and their implications for the course design and for the video-supported PBL model are presented.

Assessing the instructional effectiveness of problem-based management education in Thailand: A longitudinal evaluation

Problem-based learning (PBL) has attracted increased interest in higher education due to claims that it provides a more active and productive learning environment.Yet, to date, most empirical research on the instructional effectiveness of PBL has been conducted in medical education. This article examines the instructional effectiveness of a problem-based curriculum at a business school in Thailand. The quasi-experimental study draws on seven years of student evaluation data to compare the instructional effectiveness of courses offered in a PBL track with other courses taught in the college. The results suggest that students perceived PBL as an effective approach to learning. PBL courses fostered a more active, engaging classroom environment that helped graduate management students understand how to apply theory to practice. The findings offer initial empirical support for the use of PBL in management education and counter the belief that Asian students are not responsive to learner centred approaches to education.

An Assessment of Long-term Educational Effects of Problem Based Learning Course

The Department of Mechanical Engineering of Yonago National College of Technology has recently introduced a Problem Based Learning (PBL) course for the first-grade students. Its purpose is to enhance the students′ interest to the mechanical engineering and to develop the students′ learning ability and creativity. In this paper, we have assessed long-term educational effects of the PBL course by questionnaire survey to third-grade and fifth-grade students. The results have shown that higher grades students consider the PBL course is effective to develop creativity and improve their attitude toward cooperation by group works. Some students also think the PBL course is helpful in understanding the specialized subjects.

Integrating a Traditional Problem Based Learning Course with a Learning Management System

Integrating a Traditional Problem Based Learning Course with a Learning Management System

The Use of Multimedia Clinical Case Scenario Software in a Problem-Based Learning Course: Impact on Faculty Workload and Student Learning Outcomes

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of using multimedia clinical case scenario software in lieu of text-based problem-based learning (PBL) cases. The specific interests in this study were student learning outcomes and facilitator utilization. The study was conducted with one cohort of 39 physician assistant (PA) students using the seven text-based PBL cases and adding one DxR Clinician software case. Faculty members facilitated each case. A second cohort of 41 PA students completed a blended curriculum of four PBL text cases and four DxR Clinician cases, including the same case used by the first cohort. The students' clinical reasoning case scores for each cohort were compared using a two-tailed unpaired t-test. During the second cohort's use of the DxR clinician cases, facilitators were available to the students upon request. Facilitator hours for each case in both cohorts were tabulated. A quantitative analysis of faculty time commitment was performed comparing the cohorts using a paired t-test. The clinical reasoning score between cohorts increased 12% with the increased use of multimedia clinical case scenario software. The savings in faculty facilitator time was 41% using the blended curriculum of text-based cases and multimedia cases. This time savings could potentially rise to 92% using multimedia cases exclusively. The use of multimedia clinical case scenario software offers an exciting opportunity to encourage clinical reasoning skills using an updated format for PBL. Additionally, the faculty time savings due to decreased PBL facilitation would allow more programs to incorporate PBL into their curriculum.

University of Vermont College of Medicine

University of Vermont College of Medicine

Developing a problem-based learning (PBL) curriculum for professionalism and scientific integrity training for biomedical graduate students

A multidisciplinary faculty committee designed a curriculum to shape biomedical graduate students into researchers with a high commitment to professionalism and social responsibility and to provide students with tools to...

Problem Solving Strategies Used by RN-to-BSN Students in an Online Problem-Based Learning Course

It is essential that nursing students develop the problem solving and critical thinking skills required in the current health care environment. Problem-based learning has been promoted as a way to help students acquire those skills; however, gaps exist in the knowledge base of the strategies used by learners. The purpose of this case study was to gain insight into the problem solving experience of a group of six RN-to-BSN students in an online problem-based learning course. Data, including discussion transcripts, reflective papers, and interview transcripts, were analyzed using a qualitative approach. Students expanded their use of resources and resolved the cases, identifying relevant facts and clinical applications. They had difficulty communicating their findings, establishing the credibility of sources, and offering challenging feedback. Increased support and direction are needed to facilitate the development of problem solving abilities of students in the problem-based learning environment.

Effects of differences in problem-based learning course length on academic motivation and self-directed learning readiness in medical school students.

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an educational approach in which complex authentic problems serve as the context and stimulus for learning. PBL is designed to encourage active participation during learning. The goal of this study was to study the effects of PBL on academic motivation and self-directed learning readiness in medical school students. The subjects of this study were 190 students in the 1st and 2nd grade of medical school. The period of the PBL course was two weeks for Year 1 and five weeks for Year 2 students. Students completed one module over one week. Academic motivation tests and self-directed learning readiness tests were performed before and after the PBL course. The differences between the two groups were analyzed using paired t-test and repeated measures MANCOVA. PBL had positive effects on academic self-efficacy (self-control efficacy, task-level preference) and academic failure tolerance (behavior, task-difficulty preference) as academic motivation. PBL had a mildly positive effect on self-directed learning readiness. In addition, the five-week PBL course had greater positive effects on academic motivation than the two-week course but not with regard to self-directed learning readiness. Medical students engage in academic motivation and self-directed learning readiness during PBL, suggesting that the five-week PBL course has greater positive effects than the two-week course. Future studies are needed to confirm the most effective periods of PBL.

How do Student Attributes Influence the Way Students Experience Problem-Based Learning in Virtual Space?

SummaryThe purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study into how student attributes influence their experience of problem-based learning (PBL) in virtual space. Some engineering faculties in Australia are turning to the PBL paradigm to engender necessary skills and competence in their graduates. At the same time, due to economic and other factors, some faculties are moving towards distance education. Logically, questions are being asked about the effectiveness of PBL for technical fields such as engineering and surveying when delivered in virtual space. This paper outlines an investigation of how student attributes such as final course grade, age, academic study major and interaction with their team facilitator affect the student learning experience in PBL courses offered in virtual space. A phenomenographical study was carried out on a suitable PBL course. A frequency distribution was then superimposed on the outcome space to assist analysis and to aid interpretation of results. This frequency distribution was then used to analyse the effect of different student attributes on the learning experience. It was discovered that the quality, quantity and style of facilitator interaction had the greatest impact on the student learning experience. This highlighted the need to establish consistent student interaction plans, and to set and ensure compliance with minimum standards with respect to facilitation and student interactions. The findings also have ramifications for future staff professional development activities before starting as facilitators in these courses.

Using Problem Based Learning in Training Health Professionals: Should it Suit the Individual’s Learning Style?

Context: Recently, problem-based learning (PBL) methods have been incorporated into occupational therapy (OT) curricula as in healthcare curricula worldwide. Yet, most studies examining the effectiveness of these methods have not taken into account the individuals’ learning style and occupational functioning, despite of their importance. Objective: Our research examined the question of whether specific learning styles correlate with a higher self-evaluation by occupational therapy students of their occupational functioning (learning, studying) during a new course incorporating PBL method and with greater course satisfaction. Methods: 40 female students took part in the study. The various learning demands in the new PBL course are described. We assessed students’ learning styles using Felder’s Index of Learning Styles, while Self-Assessments of Occupational Functioning (SAOF) provided learning outcome data. We used both a modified 23-item SAOF and a novel 26-item adapted version, to examine the occupational functioning required of healthcare practitioners. Course satisfaction was assessed accordingly. Results: Occupational therapy students adopt all learning styles (sensing, intuitive, visual, verbal, active, reflective, sequential, and global) equally. Nevertheless, two-tailed Pearson’s tests revealed that a sensing (i.e. practical, facts-oriented) learning style most strongly correlates with greater assessed occupational functioning in the areas of habituation and performance, e.g. time organization, routine flexibility, and communication (r = 0.33, p &lt; 0.05). An intuitive learning style correlates with a significant ability to identify problems (r = 0.35, p &lt; 0.05) and set goals (r = 0.36, p &lt; 0.05), and global learning style yielded greater course satisfaction (r = 0.56, p &lt; 0.05). Conclusions: Students having sensing and intuitive learning styles gain most from the use of PBL method. Thus, the apparently contradictory findings of earlier research regarding the efficacy of PBL methods may have arisen from differences in the learning styles of the populations surveyed. Since problem- based and traditional teaching methods appear to suit different learning styles and to better impart different skill sets, they should be regarded as complementary.

Editor’s Note

Editor’s Note Elizabeth A. Jones (bio) It is crucial that general education outcomes such as critical thinking and communication skills are integrated across the undergraduate curriculum. While most general education programs require introductory courses in English composition and/or oral communication, it is imperative that various majors or areas of specialization continue to address and build upon these important types of outcomes. When cultivated across the curriculum, such complex capabilities can be enhanced with higher levels of challenge for students and greater achievements (Association of American Colleges and Universities, 2008). Specific majors also give students a concrete context where they can apply their outcomes as they attempt to address real-world issues or solve problems. The first article, “An Exploratory Investigation of the Assessment Practices of Selected Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business–Accredited Business Programs and Linkages with General Education Outcomes,” by Elizabeth Vitullo and me, examines these important connections. We found that schools of business do explicitly focus on essential general education outcomes in the context of the major and align assessment practices to gather information about student achievement of these types of outcomes. In this study, the business program faculty also used the results from these assessments to identify changes that need to be made to strengthen student learning experiences. Class size can affect student participation and the levels of perceived student learning. Lauren Chapman and Larry Ludlow investigate these variables in their article, “Can Downsizing College Class Sizes Augment Student Outcomes?” They used data from course evaluations to identify the effect of class size on student learning. They found that class size persisted in having a significant negative relationship with perceived student learning. This finding emerges taking into account student effort and instructor quality. Another factor affecting student learning is what actually transpires in the classroom. Justin White, Stefinee Pinnegar, and Patricia Esplin examine student learning in a problem-based learning (pbl) course. Their article, [End Page vii] “When Learning and Change Collide: Examining Student Claims to Have ‘Learned Nothing,’” presents interesting results from the analysis of final reflection papers. All students claimed to have learned from this course even if they were resistant to pbl in the beginning of the course. The final contribution in this issue is a book review by Julie B. Walsh-Covarrubias examining the creation of entrepreneurial universities to support liberal education. We hope that you find this collection of material useful and invite you to join our dialogue. Elizabeth A. Jones Elizabeth A. Jones is a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership Studies in the College of Human Resources and Education at West Virginia University. Her research focuses on assessing student learning and development. She has published numerous journal articles and three assessment books. Reference Association of American Colleges and Universities. (2008). Our students’ best work: A framework for accountability worthy of our mission. Washington, D.C.: Author. [End Page viii] Google Scholar Copyright © 2010 The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

Problem Solving Strategies Used by RN-to-BSN Students in an Online Problem-Based Learning Course

Problem Solving Strategies Used by RN-to-BSN Students in an Online Problem-Based Learning Course

Teaching evidence-based practice in a problem-based learning course in speech-language pathology

This paper presents an innovative approach undertaken to teach evidence-based practice (EBP) in a master's course in speech-language pathology that utilizes problem-based learning (PBL). The workshop content, the assessment task of preparing a critically appraised topic, and students’ feedback and reflections demonstrate the strong nexus between the content of EBP, and the teaching approach and PBL format. Source of funding: No source of funding reported.

Targeting Transfer in a STELLAR PBL Course for Pre-Service Teachers

Helping students in the professions apply conceptual ideas to the problems of practice is a key goal of problem-based learning (PBL). Because PBL is organized around small, collaborative groups, scaling up PBL to large, heterogeneous classes poses significant challenges for implementation. This study presents a hybrid model that mixes online and face-to-face PBL. The STELLAR system was developed to support online and hybrid PBL courses for pre-service teachers. It allows PBL to be implemented in larger classes because its scaffolding capabilities allow a small number of facilitators to distribute their attention among multiple small groups. In a quasi-experimental study, we found that students who participated in a hybrid PBL course using STELLAR (n= 33) learned more about targeted course concepts than students in a traditional comparison course (n=37). In addition, we present qualitative data that helps explain these outcomes by demonstrating how students engaged with these concepts during the hybrid PBL course. These results suggest that a hybrid computer-supported collaborative learning approach can be used to scaffold problem-based learning and foster deep understanding.