3.2.

2 The seven jump

PBL sessions are usually organized according to the Maastricht seven step procedure
but may be modified. Generally, those seven steps are:

1. Clarifying terms Step 1. Identify and clarify unfamiliar terms

presented in the scenario.
At the beginning of the session, the
problem(s) should be presented to students. If
you use paper cases one of the students reads
it aloud to get the group talking from the
beginning. The first activity of the group
should be the clarification of problems, terms
and concepts not understood at first moment.
The purpose of the first step is to agree on the
meaning of the various words and terms and
on the situation described in the problem. Use
can be made of the knowledge possessed by
the group members or retrieved from a
dictionary.
Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-
Languages, German

2. Defining the problem Step 2. Define the problem or problems to be

discussed.
Definition of the problem is the main goal
during this phase. The group should discuss
and reach an agreement on the tricky events,
which need explanation. Occasionally, a
problem has been intentionally described on
the way to test students’ ability to recognize
certain symptoms.

Though they have some prior knowledge to

recognize a problem, the prior knowledge
doesn’t allow them to resolve the problem
straight away. The aspects of how to generate
good cases with problems the students will
consider relevant is addressed in chapter 3.3.

Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-

Languages, German

3. Brainstorming Step 3. Aspects on basis of prior knowledge

are collected.
This should result in ideas to structure the
problem.
Each individual may express his or her ideas
 free and without immediate discussion: it is
important not to discuss and not to comment
the ideas of others during this step, but to
collect many ideas (prior knowledge).
Together, students will compile ideas of the
underlying circumstances of the problem
(explanatory approach) and/or of
implications arising from the problem
(procedural approach).

Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-

Languages, German

4. Structuring and hypothesis Step 4. Review steps 2 and 3 and arrange

explanations into tentative solutions. During
the fourth step, which forms the core of the
analysis, the problem is explained on different
ways. Ideas, which seem to be related, are
worked out in relation to each other. Each
group member is allowed to fully present
ideas about matter. Group members can draw
on all the prior knowledge they possess.

This prior knowledge may be based on

information acquired in earlier education,
facts and insights obtained by reading
different articles or on another way. The other
members of the group and the tutor are
allowed to probe the students’ knowledge to
the full, to introduce other explanations and
question certain opinions. The process of
brainstorming and discussion is a
collaborative approach. It leads to more
creativity and output than each member of the
group could generate on his own.

Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-

Languages, German

5. Learning objectives Step 5. Formulating learning objectives; group

reaches consensus on the learning objectives;
tutor ensures learning objectives are focused,
achievable, comprehensive, and appropriate.
The systematic approach and discussion may
result in several outlines written down on the
blackboard. These outlines are like possible
explanations for particular problem.
 However, since student prior knowledge is
limited, questions will come up and dilemmas
will arise. In this phase of the discussion,
conflict between members of the tutorial
group should arise.

The students will find out that certain aspects

are not yet explained and resolved in the
process of their discussion. PBL encourages
students to define these aspects as learning
goals putting them in charge of to learn. This
state of cognitive dissonance between what I
know and what I have to know to understand
the outside world is an essential condition for
PBL. Questions and dilemmas, which
appeared during session, can be used as
learning goals for individual self-directed
learning. So, the main aim of this step is to
formulate learning objectives on which group
will concentrate their activities during phase
six. In this stage it is possible to use
conceptual map as a tool for research
summary, making associations, integrating
information and proceeding information and
transferring it to long-term knowledge, but
also a tool for defying new learning objectives.

Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-

Languages, German

6. Searching for Information Step 6. Self-independent learning; during this

phase students are going home and study.
This phase is supposed to provide answers to
the questions evoked in the problem-analysis
phase and offer students possibility to acquire
a more profound knowledge of theories at the
root of the problem. The group members
collect information individually with respect
of defined learning objectives.

Information is collected from the literature

but also from other sources (library, journals,
internet etc.). PBL is also important because it
gives possibility to students to find their own
resources. Minimal time for their individual
study is two days but could be longer.
Students can learn individually but also in
pairs or in groups. It is important to already
 decide in advance, how the results of the self-
study period will be presented: by an
individual, a small group or as discussion of all
the groups. Students explore relevant sources
of knowledge and then put the new
information together, possibly resolving all
the issues that were left open.

Videoclips of this step: English, BiH-

Languages, German

7. Synthesis Step 7. Group shares results of private study.

The tutor checks learning and may assess the
group. So, the final step is synthesizing and
testing the newly acquired information.
Members of the group are sharing information
gathered at home among each other. They
also discussed whether they now acquired
more proficient, accurate, detailed
explanation and understanding about what is
going on behind the problem.

If some of the students haven’t understood the

issues well, task of other students is to try to
explain them methodology of their work.

In this step it would be necessary for the

certain types of the problems to check for
students’ decision-making process and the
algorithm behind their decisions.

8. Feedback Step 8: “Feedback” as described by Thoemen

(1998, in German). We found it very helpful to
institutionalise this step. It includes feedback
of all students on the case, the process and the
tutor, to improve the learning process. Also it
is very important the students validate the
course and give their comments on the quality
of the problem as well as on the quality of the
group process and the tutor’s performance.