Qualities of PBL Leader: The Students’ Perspective

Introduction: Problem based learning is an educational strategy in which students work together in a collaborative way to solve a given problem/scenario that they are expected to experience in their real life setting. Students' work in a group of 12-13. The group members' work under the leadership of the group leader. Aims & Objectives: This study aims to investigate the perceptions of students' regarding the qualities of PBL group leaders. Place and duration of study: The study was conducted in the University College of Medicine and Dentistry. Total 30 2nd Year MBBS students were included in the study. Material & Methods: This was a qualitative descriptive exploratory study. Three focus group discussion sessions were conducted. The sessions were tape- recorded and were then converted into written document. The data was analyzed by using Atlas ti; a qualitative data analysis tool and themes were generated. Results: Initially the entire document was read and line to line coding was done which resulted in 300 codes, a second cycle of coding resulted in 95 codes, which were reduced to 78 codes after the third cycle. Finally, 17 codes were formed which were pertinent to the research objective and 5 themes with various sub-themes. Conclusion: PBL promotes collaborative learning under the group leader. This current study provides a guideline to students and medical colleges regarding the qualities of PBL group leaders and will also help in inculcating these qualities

Student’s Perception of Computer Based Assessment Environment in an Undergraduate Medical College

Background: It is emphasized in medical education that assessment drives learning. In 2020, during the first COVID-19 lockdown, University College of Medicine and Dentistry made a shift towards Computer Based Assessments (CBAs) in order to facilitate learning. Objective: To determine undergraduate medical student’s perception for computer based assessment environment in medical school Methods: The cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at the University of Lahore, Pakistan, from May 2022 to September 2022, and included undergraduate medical students who were requested to complete the Assessment Environment Questionnaire. Students' individual perception scores were calculated and the means of individual domains and global scores were compared in different academic years. SPSS version 23 was used for statistical analysis.   Results: Of 574 participants, 20% of the participants were from 1st year, 20.7% were from second year, 20% from 3rd year, 19.9% from 4thyear and 19.3% from final year. Generally, the students perceived their assessment environment positive resulting in a global mean score of 67.6±13.7 out of the maximum 80. First year students scored significantly higher (P <0.01) compared to other years. Conclusion: The students' perception for computer based assessment environment was positiv