Department of Family Medicine, Community and Behavioral Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, UAE.
Med Teach. 2010;32(2):123-9. doi: 10.3109/01421590903548539.
The original concept of problem-based learning (PBL) was built upon an acceptance that its participants would be of a more mature age, and with personal and potential qualities that would equip them for problem solving as part of their learning process. However, despite global acceptance for the use of PBL in medical and health sciences education, and knowledge of the diverse background of students about to embark upon PBL, structured programs preparing medical students for such an educational activity are not common.
The primary aim of this study is to describe the experience in adopting and adapting an educational approach analogous to PBL, team-based learning (TBL), in preparing medical students to later study in a PBL environment and secondarily, to measure the students' reaction to this experience.
At the University of Sharjah, 363 students were enrolled over four semesters in the 'Introduction to Medical Sciences Education (IMSE)' course. They were divided into groups of 25-27 students per class, where their learning was facilitated through a TBL approach. The course was evaluated both quantitatively and qualitatively and appropriate statistical analysis was applied to their responses.
Out of 363 students, 304 (84%) responded to a 28-item closed-ended questionnaire. Their mean scores and consensus measurements indicated a high degree of students' satisfaction. Eighty-two students (65%) responded to the open-ended questions providing 139 comments. Content analysis of the responses supported the quantitative results.
This study demonstrated a high degree of students' satisfaction from the course in acquiring skills preparing them for future PBL. Although this represents an evaluation of the TBL effects upon the early exposures to PBL, TBL was considered to be a feasible, efficient and cost-effective educational approach in preparing the students for their new educational experience.
基于问题的学习（PBL）的原始概念是基于这样一种接受，即其参与者将更加成熟，并且具有个人和潜在的素质，使他们能够在学习过程中解决问题。然而，尽管 PBL 在医学和健康科学教育中的全球应用得到了认可，并且了解了即将开始 PBL 的学生的多样化背景，但为医学生准备这种教育活动的结构化课程并不常见。
本研究的主要目的是描述采用和改编类似于 PBL 的教育方法（团队学习，TBL）的经验，以准备医学生以后在 PBL 环境中学习，其次是衡量学生对这种经验的反应。
在沙迦大学，363 名学生在四个学期内参加了“医学科学教育导论（IMSE）”课程。他们被分为每班 25-27 名学生的小组，通过 TBL 方法促进他们的学习。该课程进行了定量和定性评估，并对他们的反应进行了适当的统计分析。
在 363 名学生中，有 304 名（84%）对 28 项封闭式问卷做出了回应。他们的平均分数和共识测量表明学生的满意度很高。82 名学生（65%）对开放式问题做出了回应，提供了 139 条评论。对回答的内容分析支持了定量结果。
这项研究表明，学生对课程中获得的技能非常满意，这些技能使他们为未来的 PBL 做好了准备。尽管这代表了对 TBL 对早期 PBL 暴露的影响的评估，但 TBL 被认为是一种可行、高效且具有成本效益的教育方法，可使学生为新的教育体验做好准备。
