Work in Progress: Problem-Based Learning and Assessment of Competence in an Engineering Biomaterials Course

Problem-based learning (PBL) is implemented in a senior level undergraduate engineering biomaterials course. Preliminary results from student surveys, assignments, exams, and a comprehensive design project suggest that students indicate no improvement in student satisfaction compared to traditional instructional methods. Since PBL demands that students be active agents in the learning process, students' self-assessment ability is critical to the success of the method. Responses to class surveys and student performance indicate disconnect between student self-assessment of understanding and the actual state, perhaps explaining the mixed success of the method. A new assessment rubric based on Bloom's taxonomy is outlined. The rubric provides a quantification of student understanding in specific competence areas, and may further elucidate student understanding as distinct from student confidence. The rubric also assesses the more sophisticated areas of competence, e.g., synthesis, analysis, and evaluation, that PBL emphasizes and that traditional grading underemphasizes