This work provides inspiration to foster Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in teaching practices related to waste management. Problem-Based Learning is about providing a learning environment where students can work practically and theoretically with problems of relevance for society. In this learning process, students themselves will define societally…

This paper explores how the concept of "the facilitator as a fool" can be used as a guiding principle for supervising students at universities adhering to problem-based learning pedagogies. With the example of students enrolled at spatial planning studies, the paper argues that students should learn how to face uncertainty and take…

This paper provides a conceptual elaboration of the role of Problem-based Learning (PBL) in the integration of social sciences and humanities (SSH) with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and an analysis of the challenges this brings about. SSH-STEM integration is an endeavor that is timely, relevant, and urgent given the…

This paper presents a model which can be used to help teachers to design pedagogical opportunities for meaningful reflections in higher education. Within the PBL Future initiative of Aalborg University, we worked with a group of students from different study programmes and levels. In a three-semester long process these students engaged in a series…

Problem-based learning (PBL) involves using problems as a starting point of learning rather than relying on traditional learning settings. In the present paper we present the theoretical framework behind a specific PBL setting we have developed since 2012 for training Danish psychologist students in a small university children's clinic…

Supervision in higher education (HE) often balances the tension between fostering student autonomy and providing sufficient guidance, especially within undergraduate programs. This paper explores an under-researched area: the dynamics of group supervision in undergraduate education, specifically how students challenge their supervisor's expertise.…

This article examines why students experience Problem-Based Learning (PBL) environments differently and discusses considerations for improving PBL environments to support a more diverse student population. Based on theoretical perspectives regarding motivation, identification, and learning, we present a new typology consisting of four types of…

The rapidly evolving landscape of higher education demands not only changes in teaching approaches but also organizational transformation. This paper explores the potential of problem-based learning (PBL) as a lever for organizational change, particularly within higher education institutions. Based on a comprehensive organizational development…

In the current conceptualisations of Problem Based Learning and how we practice it, the students are expected to possess the necessary academic competencies in order to study through PBL. However, a desk research reveals that students in many cases don't have the necessary understanding or conceptual comprehension of disciplines such as problem…

The purpose of this study was to identify patterns of change in students' awareness of, interest in and engagement with sustainability issues during the process of acclimatisation to their PBL engineering studies, and to look for differences between engineering disciplines with respect to these aspects. This study used a longitudinal qualitative…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is the through-going didactics at Aalborg University, but literature shows how integrating PBL into project work is challenging for students. Studies indicate that students especially struggle with the problem analysis section, i.e., what it consists of, how the structure of the analysis should be, etc. Moreover,…

This paper presents how a ninth semester teaching programme created employability skills among students. During the semester, students were expected to collaborate with a company or an organization to solve a task set by the external partner. The students used their academic and analytical skills and competences as a part of working with the…

An essential part of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is the students' group work. What happens in students' group work when no tutor/facilitator is present is normally a hidden land. Thus, there is limited research on students' interactional way of doing PBL, this study tries to amend this by looking at how students conduct group work without any…

This paper proposes a systematic approach to the analysis of the prevalence of generic competences in formal problem-based learning (PBL) curricula at higher education institutions and universities in which generic competences are an integral and integrated part of the curriculum, with a particular focus on how the generic competences are…

In this study, we present an educational design experiment seeking to promote interaction and knowledge sharing in groups and to establish a sense of community among students during a semester at Aalborg University, Denmark. The experiment is materialised as a tangible artefact in the form of a colourful box with materials and texts. Some of the…