Problem-based learning: a new approach to medical education

Abstract

This paper describes the main tenets of Problem-based Learning (PBL), an educational approach that emphasizes the utilization of real problems as a natural stimulus for learning; encourages identification of learning needs by students themselves more than dissertations on the part of teachers and promotes the development of problem-solving and learning skills more than the acquisition and recall of factual knowledge. The tutorial group as an useful tool for the implementation of PBL in medical education is also described. Information about observed effects of PBL in european and north american medical schools is included.