Subjective and Objective Evaluation of PBL Outcomes in Preclinical Medical Students

Received: April 25, 2011
Accepted: May 01, 2011
Ref: Marya RK. Subjective and Objective Evaluation of PBL Outcomes in Preclinical Medical Students. Internet J Med Update. 2012 Jan;7(1):56-8.

SUBJECTIVE AND OBJECTIVE EVALUATION OF PBL OUTCOMES IN PRECLINICAL MEDICAL STUDENTS

Ramesh Kumar Marya MD, PhD

Professor and Head, Unit of Physiology, AIMST University, Badong, Malaysia

(Corresponding Author: Prof. R K Marya, Unit of Physiology, AIMST University, Badong, Malaysia; E-mail: rkumarmarya@yahoo.com)

ABSTRACT

Problem based learning curriculum is widely recognized as a progressive, learner-centered, active learning approach and is currently used in the entire medical curriculum in over 10% of medical schools worldwide. But, is there real evidence that PBL is more effective than traditional approaches? In this report, outcomes of a PBL tutorial in 55 second year MBBS students have been evaluated by the facilitators (subjective evaluation) and by asking the students a set of questions based on the intended outcome of the PBL ( objective evaluation) soon after the completion of PBL tutorial. In the subjective assessment by the facilitators, all the students scored over 80% marks. In the objective assessment, out of 55 students, only three students scored over 50% marks. Perusal of answers to individual questions revealed appalling lack of knowledge of the subject. To conclude, before introduction of PBL-based curriculum in medical schools, usefulness of PBLs in preclinical medical education needs to be thoroughly investigated by objective evaluation of intended outcomes.

KEY WORDS: Medical education; Preclinical students; PBLs; Objective evaluation; Questionnaire

Images from this publication

Tables

Note: Some rights reserved. The materials of this electronic journal are copyrighted © by Dr. Arun Kumar Agnihotri “A K S Publication”. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the copyright holder. The readers of this journal are free to download, copy, print, distribute and display the work provided; they must give the original author credit, not use this work for commercial purpose, and not alter, transform, or build upon this work.