Using Problem-Based Learning (PBL) with Hong Kong Occupational Therapy Students: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

This action learning project aimed at exploring the feasibility, values and limitations of implementing problem-based learning (PBL) with Hong Kong occupational therapy (OT) students. The PBL methodology was implemented in a year-one subject in the undergraduate occupational therapy curriculum, entitled ‘Sensation and Perception’. During a 14-week period, 90 OT students, working in small teams of 6, studied three PBL cases. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to examine the effects of this PBL implementation. The Inventory of Learning Preferences (ILP) and Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ) gauged the change in the students’ learning approach before and after PBL implementation. Focus group interviews and non-graded reflective journals were used to examine students’ perceptions of the PBL experience. Although their learning approaches and preferences did not differ significantly after the PBL experience, the majority of students (84%) favored this learning method. The qualitative data indicated that the students developed basic study skills such as the ability to brainstorm and perform a literature search, and the experience of which they valued. The major challenges identified were the heavy workload, insufficient learning resources to support the new learning experience, and poor transfer of the acquired study skills to other learning situations. It is recommended that the PBL methodology be refined based on the opportunities and challenges identified, and that its application be extended to other subjects in the teaching curriculum.