Background:
Team-based learning (TBL) is an interactive teaching and learning strategy which is largely used in medical and dental colleges as it provides effective interactive learning environment, enhances critical thinking and supports students' communication.
Objectives:
To evaluate the perception of undergraduate dental students about team-based learning in one of the oral radiology courses.
Materials and methods:
We performed TBL for second year undergraduate dental students on a clinically oriented topic in one of the oral radiology courses. An online anonymous questionnaire was distributed among 35 students after a TBL session. Quantitative and qualitative responses of students were collected and statistically analyzed.
Results:
Thirty students attended this TBL session. More than half of the participating students found that TBL is more engaging than the traditional lectures and they required more TBL sessions for coverage of clinically oriented topics. Nearly 80% of participants agreed that teamwork in TBL is an effective way to regrasp what they had learnt to solve problems and they were actively engaged in discussion and critical thinking.
Conclusion:
The team-based learning method promoted student self-learning and enhanced their critical thinking with improvement of teamwork behavior and communication skills. The students appreciated the significance of team interaction and discussion to foster students engagement, problem solving kills and critical exploration.