The problem-based learning (PBL) method implemented at several specialties at six national universities offers the students the possibility of improving the personal and professional capacities, said students involved in the project that forms part of the EU program Erasmus+. The young people said they managed to achieve good results and learned to work in a team, while the accumulated knowledge will be useful in the professional activity.

The six involved universities are: State University of Moldova, State University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Nicolae Testemitanu”, Academy of Economic Studies, “Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu” State University of Cahul, Technical University and “Alecu Russo” State University of Balti.

In a news conference at IPN, Technical University pro-rector Larisa Bugaian said the goal of the project is to improve the quality of the teaching-learning methodology and of higher education programs by increasing their relevance for the labor force market.

Academy of Economic Studies student Igor Baraliuc said this is a new, different experience. The visits paid to companies enabled him to see how a manager works. Georgeta Lupashko, of the same university, said she could see from inside how enterprises work and could identify the problems in their activity and suggest solutions to these.

State University student Nadejda Hancu noted that within the PBL method, the students receive a set of problems and then form teams and try to find information and propose solutions. “It was an interesting experience because the PBL is not something described in a textbook. You have to read, learn, explore and debate. It is a new method that implies team work besides individual work,” she stated.

“Being students, we expect the teacher to provide us with the necessary information or we can find this in library books. The PBL program is something else. Within this, learning is centered on the student, the teacher being only a mentor or an assistant who helps the student to solve the problem,” said Mihaela Jaloba, of “Nicolae Testemitanu” University.

Silviu-Bogdan Fucarev, of the Technical University, said that as part of this program the young people managed to develop teamwork aptitudes and to solve the identified problems. “I personally saw huge progress made by my mates. In the first semester, I witnessed conflicts in the team and less harmonious work. In the second semester all these things have been remedied,” he stated.

Problem-Based Learning project coordinator Romeo Turcan, teacher of the Aalborg University of Denmark, said the program included activities that involved interdisciplinary teams that consisted of students of the six universities and this is a practice that will be followed in the future. The PBL method will be implemented the next academic year as well, starting with September 1, 2018.

The project envisions a mobility component by which Moldovan students and teachers will go on formation and study trips to the UK and Denmark.