Breaking through the Silos with Technology and Team-Based Learning


IPTBL is a pioneering effort in conducting interprofessional education (IPE) using team-based learning (TBL).

jimsil-2“In running this type of events, technology is tremendously important,” said Dr. Chan in the seminar.

We all need to learn to collaborate, and through collaboration, we learn more. With technology, it is now easier to create new collaborative grounds for students. Having a firm belief that “collaborative work will lead to better patient outcome,” Dr. Lap Ki Chan (Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine) initiated Interprofessional Team-Based Learning (IPTBL), a technology-facilitated project, with a team of pioneers, including Dr. Charlene C. Ho, School of Biomedical Sciences; Dr. Fraide A. Ganotice, Jr., Bau Institute of Medical and Health Sciences Education; Dr. Veronica Lam, School of Nursing; Dr. Ming Fai Law, Department of Social Work and Social Administration; and Dr. Gordon Wong, Department of Anaesthesiology. The team shared their experience in a seminar on 6 June 2016.

IPTBL – How does it work?

jimsil-2“The future is bright I think. TBL is the way to go in healthcare,” said Dr. Gordon Wong in the seminar.

Collaborative learning is nothing new in education. But what makes IPTBL special is that it is a pioneering effort to promote interprofessional education (IPE) across healthcare disciplines using team-based learning (TBL) and ed-tech. Students from multidisciplinary silos teamed up to tackle clinical cases, debate on questions and appeal to facilitators regarding the answers. So far, the project has successfully broken down the silos of 7 different programmes and engaged 600 students from HKU and PolyU.

The use of ed-tech
It would be impossible to engage such a large number of learners simultaneously without the help of technology. To enable effective class management, an e-platform called the Learning Activity Management System (LAMS) was utilized. It allowed teachers to track the progress of all students through the different stages of TBL.

Technology makes collaboration easier in the classroom. Contact us if you want to create new collaborative opportunities for your students.

More photos of the seminar can be found on our Facebook and Twitter.

Further reading:
Larry Michaelson, L. (2009). The Essential Elements of Team-Based Learning. Adapted from Chapter 1 of Michaelsen, L., Sweet, M. & Parmalee, D. (2009). Team-Based Learning: Small Group Learning’s Next Big Step. New Directions in Teaching and Learning, 7-27.
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