Problem-based learning

Introduction The origins of problem-based learning (PBL) probably go back to 1920s. Celestin Freinet, a primary school teacher, returned from World War I to his village in south-east France. Due to his injuries, he was too breathless to speak to the class for more than a few minutes, so he created a new system of learning. This new system encouraged his pupils to take control of their own studies, communicate effectively, be more cooperative and evaluate their own progress. PBL, as currently employed in medical education, was first used and recognized at McMaster University, in Canada, in the late 1960s. PBL is an active form of learning stimulated by, and focused around a clinical, community or scientific problem. In this paper we discuss how to design a oneweek PBL course for medical students. We will introduce and use Harden’s 10 questions as the framework for describing this course. At the end of this article we will reflect on the advantages provided by this course over a more traditional approach. The topic is “The patient with upper gastrointestinal bleeding” and is part of the “Gastrointestinal diseases” block. The course is designed for a group of 8 medical students in the fourth year of their training.