The Impact of Problem Based learning Module on Maternity Nursing Students' Experiences and Achievements

EL-Nemer, Amina; Downe, Soo; Awadalla, Nabeel Joseph

doi:10.21608/jhiph.2009.20739

The Impact of Problem Based learning Module on Maternity Nursing Students' Experiences and Achievements

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Department of Maternity and Gynecology Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt

² Faculty of Health, University of Central Lancashire, UK

³ Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt

10.21608/jhiph.2009.20739

Abstract

Background: Problem Based Learning (PBL) has long been used within teaching in higher education to encourage student to have an active role in learning process. PBL is a favored approach in nurse education in some high-resource countries, where learning styles have become increasingly interactive and reflective, and group sizes tend to be small. To date, there have been few if any studies of attempts to apply PBL in countries where the learning style is largely didactic, and group sizes are usually large. Objective: The aim of this paper is to evaluate the impact of PBL module on third year undergraduate maternity nursing students undertaking a Problem Based Learning (PBL) program for their maternity care module. Methods: Focus group interviews, an interview questionnaire sheet, and scholastic achievement retrospective auditing. Results: The evaluation of PBL was generally positive. The students reported that the interactive learning process enhanced the acquisition of multiple educational and transferable skills. They believed that these were likely to advance their future education and career development. However, they also experienced some challenges in the transition to the PBL teaching strategy. Conclusion: The study suggests that PBL may be a useful strategy, even in settings where the underlying educational philosophies are culturally novel, and group sizes are large. However, further preparation of students is necessary to induce the cultural changes that could maximize the benefits arising from this style of learning in a developing world context.

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