In the trend of innovating university teaching methods in the direction of student-centered learning, this article proposes the application of problem-based learning (PBL) in teaching English communication skills to engineering students at University of Engineering and Technology, Vietnam National University. With a combination of qualitative and…

The recent review of the Veterinary Science degree program of the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, emphasised student-centred learning. Towards this end, courses were introduced throughout the program to integrate concurrent discipline-based material, which were delivered via problem-based learning (PBL) methodology. As PBL was novel to the…

The implementation of the European Union's Erasmus Plus (E+) Program has resulted in the possibility of joint initiatives across-borders led by teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL), who can bring classroom practice closer to education as a key area for employability and prepare students for work and communication in multicultural and…

The aim of the study was to investigate how physiotherapy students using a problem-based learning approach develop into experts during higher education, and answers the question: How do physiotherapy students at bachelor's level understand the problem-based learning approach while learning to become professionals? PBL is examined using…

The problem-based learning (PBL) approach was implemented as a treatment for higher education visual arts students over one semester to examine its effect on the creative thinking and critical thinking disposition of these students. PBL had a significant effect on creative thinking, but critical thinking disposition was affected to a lesser…

A problem-based learning (PBL) assumption is that silence is incompatible with collaborative learning. Although sociocultural studies have reinterpreted silence as collaborative, we must understand how silence occurs in PBL groups. This essay presents students' explanations of dominance, leadership, and silence as PBL group roles. An ethnographic…

This study aims to explore how online searching plays a role during PBL tutorials in two undergraduate health sciences curricula, Medicine and Dentistry. Utilizing Interactional Ethnography (IE) as an organizing framework for data collection and analysis, and drawing on a critical theory of technology as an explanatory lens, enabled a textured…

Mobile devices are increasingly being used by undergraduate students to access online information in the problem-based learning (PBL) process, initially in the self-directed phase, and more recently within face-to-face tutorials. This qualitative study across three undergraduate health professional programs used semi-structured interviews to…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is well suited for courses in the history of medicine, where multiple perspectives exist and information has to be gleaned from different sources. A student, an archivist, and a teacher offer three perspectives about a senior level course where students explored the antecedents and consequences of medical technology.…

The impact of problem-based learning (PBL) in improving academic achievement comparedwith other forms of teaching is equivocal. This paper argues that poor tutorial preparation and vague reporting of the brainstorming stage of PBL are major contributing factors. To address these issues this study incorporated a scaffolding mechanism into the…

This paper presents results of a study conducted with undergraduate students involved in either problem- or project-based curricula (Medicine and Engineering, respectively) at the Université de Sherbrooke, Canada. The objective of the present research was to measure the impact of these innovative curricula on students' engagement and persistence…

Little is known about the influence of language background in problem-based learning (PBL) tutorial groups on group processes and students' academic achievement. This study investigated the relationship between language background, secondary school score, tutorial group processes, and students' academic achievement in PBL. A validated tutorial…

The theme of this special issue is timely as the world becomes increasingly flat and globally connected (Friedman, 2007). By focusing on an international perspective in problem-based learning (PBL), it puts culture squarely in the center, whether it is a national or disciplinary culture. The articles in this special issue represent Thailand, South…