Falcon Ashley, Porter Andrew, Matsuda Yui, Foronda Cynthia L, Lovan Padideh, Graefe Beck
School of Nursing and Health Studies, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, United States.
Front Public Health. 2025 May 8;13:1560098. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1560098. eCollection 2025.
Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered pedagogical strategy that emphasizes active learning through the exploration of complex real-world problems. While it has demonstrated effectiveness in undergraduate- and graduate-level programs, there is a notable gap in research on the dose-response relationship between the extent of PBL exposure and competency development in public health education. This study examines the effect of PBL on undergraduate public health students' learning outcomes and explores the dose-response relationship between the extent of PBL exposure and the development of specific public health competencies in students.
A pre-posttest design using surveys evaluated the impact of PBL across three undergraduate public health courses at a medium-sized, private university in South Florida. Students ( = 150) completed surveys at the beginning and end of each course to assess changes in 10 skill domains. Composite scores were calculated for each domain and overall competency. Repeated samples t-tests assessed pre-to-post course improvements, and linear regression analyses examined the dose-response effect of the number of PBL courses taken on competency development. Post-hoc analyses examined gender and racial/ethnic differences.
Significant increases were found across all 10 learners' skill domains from pre- to post-course measurements, with the most substantial gains in Data Literacy (Cohen's = 0.812), Critical Thinking (Cohen's = 0.726), and Public Speaking (Cohen's = 0.672). The number of PBL courses taken significantly predicted the total skill competency score ( = 0.24, = 0.02), indicating a dose-response effect. Significant relationships were also found for individual domains such as Critical Thinking ( = 0.27, = 0.009), Data Literacy ( = 0.24, = 0.02), and Team Dynamics ( = 0.25, = 0.02).
Findings demonstrate that PBL effectively enhances several competencies critical to public health practice among undergraduate students. The novel discovery of a dose-response relationship suggests that increased exposure to PBL may lead to cumulative improvements in competencies. These results support the integration of multiple PBL courses in undergraduate public health curricula.
基于问题的学习（PBL）是一种以学生为中心的教学策略，强调通过探索复杂的现实世界问题来进行主动学习。虽然它已在本科和研究生课程中证明了有效性，但在公共卫生教育中，关于PBL接触程度与能力发展之间的剂量反应关系的研究存在显著差距。本研究考察了PBL对本科公共卫生专业学生学习成果的影响，并探讨了PBL接触程度与学生特定公共卫生能力发展之间的剂量反应关系。
采用前测-后测设计并通过调查评估了PBL对南佛罗里达州一所中型私立大学的三门本科公共卫生课程的影响。学生（n = 150）在每门课程开始和结束时完成调查，以评估10个技能领域的变化。计算每个领域和总体能力的综合得分。重复样本t检验评估课程前后的进步情况，线性回归分析考察所修PBL课程数量对能力发展的剂量反应效应。事后分析考察性别和种族/族裔差异。
从课程前测到后测，所有10个学习者技能领域均有显著提高，数据素养（科恩d = 0.812）、批判性思维（科恩d = 0.726）和公众演讲（科恩d = 0.672）方面的提高最为显著。所修PBL课程数量显著预测了总技能能力得分（β = 0.24，p = 0.02），表明存在剂量反应效应。在批判性思维（β = 0.27，p = 0.009）、数据素养（β = 0.24，p = 0.02）和团队动态（β = 0.25，p = 0.02）等个别领域也发现了显著关系。
研究结果表明，PBL有效地提高了本科生对公共卫生实践至关重要的几种能力。剂量反应关系这一新颖发现表明，增加PBL接触可能会导致能力的累积提高。这些结果支持在本科公共卫生课程中整合多门PBL课程。
