Students’ perception of problem-based learning conducted in phase1 medical program, UCSI University, Malaysia

Abstract

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been introduced in the Phase 1 curriculum of Doctor of Medicine programme at Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, UCSI University since its inception in 2005. The main objective of this study was to investigate the perception of medical students on problembased learning sessions. A cross sectional study was conducted on a total of 115 medical students from June 2011 to June 2012. Forty nine (42.6%), 31(27%) and 35(30.4%) medical students from first, second and third years respectively participated in the study. The questionnaire included 23 statements to assess the benefits and disadvantages of PBL and the requirements in PBL sessions. Findings revealed that the majority agreed with statements on benefits-PBL motivates students for self-learning (80.9%), enhances discovery of learning issues (78.3%), provides critical thinking skills (71.3%), improves communication skills (80%) and enhances in obtaining new information (85.2%). Sixty percent (n=69) responded that PBL was time consuming and 84 (73.1%) noted that some students dominate while others are passive in the discussion. Overall positive perception on effectiveness of PBL on students' learning was obtained in 79 (68.7%) of respondents and the highest agreement was observed among the second year students (93.5%).

The Effectiveness of Problem-based Learning in Acquisition of Knowledge, Soft Skills During Basic and Preclinical Sciences: Medical Students' Points of View

“…Furthermore, previous a study indicated that PBL graduates rated themselves better prepared professionally than other non-PBL graduates regarding interpersonal abilities, problem-solving skills and the ability to work and plan efficiently and autonomously ( 2 ). In contrary, studies found that PBL requires much time that must be provided to solve complex problems, which lead to a lack of time available for the material/content ( 16 , 28 ).…”

Attitude and perception of undergraduate medical students toward the problem-based learning in Chitwan Medical College, Nepal

“…In Malaysia, a study by Emerald et al showed that PBL was time-consuming, and can be substituted by other instructional methods. 11 Students will remember more content if brief activities are introduced in the lecture, and in order to emphasize and maintain students individual responsibility, the entire course need not be team based. 12 Newman concluded that the limited high-quality evidence available from existing reviews does not provide robust evidence about the effectiveness of different kinds of PBL in different contexts.…”

Students’ perception towards the problem based learning tutorial session in a system-based hybrid curriculum

“… 10 , 11 However, a few studies reported that PBL as an instructional method is time consuming, and does not impact knowledge acquisition. 12 , 13 The tutors guide the group to achieve their goals by keeping them focused on their task. The PBL sessions involve clear roles for each member of the group, known steps of discussion, and identification of the learning objectives from the discussed problem.…”

“…However, in Malaysia they showed that PBL was time consuming, and can be substituted by other instructional methods. 12 Therefore, the student’s impression of the PBL session is controversial. Thus, the current study was designed to investigate the student’s perception of PBL sessions in the College of Medicine, KSU, Riyadh, KSA.…”