This communication sets out to delineate the link between two widely known educational concepts in recent development of higher education, the problem-based learning(PBL) and outcome-based education(OBE). In the conte...This communication sets out to delineate the link between two widely known educational concepts in recent development of higher education, the problem-based learning(PBL) and outcome-based education(OBE). In the contemporary literature of medical education, basic or clinical, PBL and OBE have often been noted and cited. Yet, they seemed to be treated as two independent domains of educational theories, one about "problems/cases" and the other about "outcomes/competencies".In reality, both represent an intertwined concept of action learning; i.e., learning by doing in learner-centered approach in a context of social process, as attempts to help break away from the teacher-centered traditional rote learning. Also, measurements of learners' competencies in both PBL and OBE are linked to the same assessment pyramid known as Blooms' s taxonomy of cognition. PBL, since its inception in 1969, has not reached its full educational potential despite its world-wide adoption in varying formats in which the practice of PBL has not been systematically or faithfully subscribing to the learning outcomes expected of PBL On the other hand, OBE, better conceptualized in 1994, brought forward considerable controversies in its educational effectiveness, because lacking a better defined platform of teaching and learning activities, the practice of OBE unfortunately often resulted in the selection of activities not conducive to high level learning outcomes. This communication attempts to link PBL closely with OBE in the effective delivery of medical education(which can be expanded to high education at large) based on authors' experiences and personal viewpoints.展开更多
文摘This communication sets out to delineate the link between two widely known educational concepts in recent development of higher education, the problem-based learning(PBL) and outcome-based education(OBE). In the contemporary literature of medical education, basic or clinical, PBL and OBE have often been noted and cited. Yet, they seemed to be treated as two independent domains of educational theories, one about "problems/cases" and the other about "outcomes/competencies".In reality, both represent an intertwined concept of action learning; i.e., learning by doing in learner-centered approach in a context of social process, as attempts to help break away from the teacher-centered traditional rote learning. Also, measurements of learners' competencies in both PBL and OBE are linked to the same assessment pyramid known as Blooms' s taxonomy of cognition. PBL, since its inception in 1969, has not reached its full educational potential despite its world-wide adoption in varying formats in which the practice of PBL has not been systematically or faithfully subscribing to the learning outcomes expected of PBL On the other hand, OBE, better conceptualized in 1994, brought forward considerable controversies in its educational effectiveness, because lacking a better defined platform of teaching and learning activities, the practice of OBE unfortunately often resulted in the selection of activities not conducive to high level learning outcomes. This communication attempts to link PBL closely with OBE in the effective delivery of medical education(which can be expanded to high education at large) based on authors' experiences and personal viewpoints.
