PBL is associated with perceived improvements in critical thinking and communication skills among undergraduate medical students in both resource-limited and resource-rich settings¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2026 · checked against its sources 2026-10-31 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

Reading the evidence codes

q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.

This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.

q2 i? Included studies reported that PBL was associated with perceived improvements in critical thinking and communication skills among undergraduate medical students in both resource-limited and resource-rich educational environments. → Abugri Bruce Ayabilla 2026

Evidence¶

Abugri Bruce Ayabilla 2026¶

Abugri Bruce Ayabilla, Assibi Maxwell Ateni, Amalba Anthony, Gaa Patience Kanyiri, Kpebu Sophia E.A., Karikari Patience Afua Adwaapa, Mogre Victor. (2026). The effects of problem-based learning (PBL) on undergraduate medical students' critical thinking and communication skills development: A scoping review across resource-rich and resource-limited settings (2015-2024). PLoS One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0342599

q2 · i? · review · r2

The scoping review's synthesis of eight included studies, all cross-sectional, found that PBL was "associated with perceived improvements in critical thinking and communication skills" in both setting types. No effect sizes were reported.

"The included studies reported that PBL was associated with perceived improvements in critical thinking and communication skills among undergraduate medical students in both resource-limited and resource-rich educational environment."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

Communication Skills — outcome: instruction changes it
Critical Thinking — outcome: instruction changes it

Cross-sectional studies in resource-limited settings suggest PBL is associated with perceived critical-thinking and communication gains, with collaborative discussion possibly compensating for infrastructural constraints — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
First-year medical students in the single first-year-focused study reported high engagement (97%) and perceived improved teamwork (87%) with PBL — related
All eight included studies were cross-sectional, conducted in Asia, and most lacked a comparator — related
AI-based educational technology use is positively associated with critical thinking among undergraduate medical students — related

Page metadata

Field	Value
`status`	`review`
`generated`	by `process:wiki-ingest` on `2026-10-31`
`trust`	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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