Effectiveness of problem-based learning versus traditional teaching in respiratory therapy

PBL vs. Traditional

Two of the methods of pedagogy that are currently employed in respiratory therapy are Problem-Based Learning and Traditional Teaching. Both instructional methods can provide a strenuous curriculum for the student interested in comprehensive training in the field of respiratory therapy, and each method has its advantages and (of course) its disadvantages. The focus of this study will be to determine which pedagogical methodology provides the most efficient and effective results in a respiratory therapy educational setting.

To accomplish that objective, the study will administer surveys in questionnaire form to students attending two separate schools that offer training in respiratory therapy. The questionnaires will provide a quantifying response to qualitative, and quantitative, information. Each school's pedagogy will represent either problem-based or traditional teaching methods and students from each school will be asked to complete pre and post training questionnaires and surveys. Additionally, students will be tested on their knowledge of respiratory therapy training techniques, standards and requirements. Results from both schools will be analyzed and compared in order to determine if one method offers advantages over the other.

Importance of the Study

A number of recent studies have shown the importance of education and the role that instructional designs and pedagogy have in that importance. One study determined that "in recent years the transition from school to working life has acquired a new dimension for education policy and research…education at all levels are becoming empirically evident" (Scheeberger, 1999, p. 612).

This may be especially true in the medical field since it is projected as a field that will continue to grow over the next few decades. Baby boomers in America are turning 65 years of age at a rate of 10,000 per day (beginning in 2011) and will continue to do so for the next twenty years. What that means is that with an aging society there will be an increasing demand for services such as respiratory therapy. It is important to teach the individuals who are in training to understand, comprehend, and obtain the knowledge most helpful to them in their career. Not only will training help them to progress in their chosen career, it will also ensure that patients in need of help, are receiving the best possible care.

Several medical schools have implemented changes to their curriculum in order to facilitate the teaching necessary for those students seeking that knowledge. It is now estimated that more than eighty percent of medical schools in the United States have included some type of problem-based learning in their curriculum. One school that switched from traditional teaching methods to the problem-based method was the medical school at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine. A recent article extolled the fact that "MU's medical school was among the first to turn to an educational strategy called Problem-Based Learning (PBL)" (Medical News Today, 2011). According to the article, the MU's pioneering curriculum shortens by nearly 60% the amount of lecture times, teaches medicine by using clinical cases and decreases the amount of rote memorization. The teaching method used at MU also achieves outstanding results as reported in the article.

The importance of this study hinges on whether any significant differences can be determined concerning the level of achievement in the two groups of students, their overall level of knowledge, and whether that knowledge can be successfully employed in the field.

Traditional Teaching

Traditional teaching has been an effective teaching style for a number of decades and has been used successfully to teach respiratory therapy and other medical fields.

Depending on exactly what skills are necessary to become efficient at administering treatments in respiratory therapy scenarios, traditional teaching may be the most effective approach for medical students. One recent study found that "when tasks require extensive form acquisition components the traditional classroom environment will most likely be more effective" (McKethan, Rabinowitz, Kernodle, 2010, p. 156). Of course the study was comparing traditional teaching to virtual learning, but its premise still applies.

Another study that specifically searched for differences in learning of medical students compared problem based and traditional methods, the study determined that "no significant differences in learning outcomes were found between the two groups" (Lycke, Grottum, Stromso, 2006, p. 721). However, it is interesting to note that the study did find that PBL students showed significantly more self-regulated learning and more constructive conceptions of learning. Participants also were more open to new ideas and using resources that were not used by the traditional learning students.

Another study confirmed that prognosis by determining that "The effects of student orientated learning environments have for instance been shown to increase over time with students in student orientated courses reporting more self-regulation than students in traditional courses (Minnaert & van der Hulst, 2000; Vermetten, 2002).

If the findings from the Lycke, et al. study are true, then the objective must be examined regarding respiratory therapy training. The question that needs to be answered might well be one of exactly what does the student need to retain in order to be an effective respiratory therapist.

Other studies have also been conducted comparing the two radically different approaches to teaching, and many of those studies have taken place in the educational and medical communities.

One 2006 study of high school students may present evidence of what will be discovered by this study; two classes of high school biology students were both taught the same subject by the same teacher. One class was taught using problem-based learning, while the other class was taught using a textbook-oriented traditional instructional method. What the results revealed where that the PBL students had higher intrinsic goal orientation, task value, use of elaboration learning strategies, critical thinking, metacognitive self-regulation, effort regulation, and peer learning compared to the other class (Sungur & Tekkaya, 2006, p. 308). Of course, this study compared high school biology students to other high school biology students, so results may not have anything at all to do with university respiratory therapy students; it will be interesting to see if the results are similar.

That there is a difference between learning via PBL and learning through the traditional teaching method is a given, what this study seeks to determine is whether such differences are so pronounced that it would make sense to favor one approach over the other. After all, learning styles, approaches and methodologies are constantly changing, being improved and new ones implemented in an ongoing style. Determining what approach works best is an ongoing venture. It is the aim of this study to add to the abundant literature available on the subject.