Team Based Learning an Active Teaching and Learning Pedagogy: A Narrative Literature Review

Active learning is essential for adult learning and numerous active learning pedagogies have been tested for their effectiveness. One of these pedagogies is Team-Based Learning (TBL). In team-based learning,students are encouraged to participate in individual and group learning activities. The role of the instructor or teacher is to act as a facilitator or guide, instead of the “sage on the stage”. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to evaluate the evidence of the effectiveness of team-based learning among various professionals.Method: The literature search was done using electronic databases to search for primary research studies on the overall effectiveness of team-based learning. The databases of PubMed, CINHAL, and ProQuest were searched for applicable research studies. Results: There were 153 articles found on this topic. After reviewing the title and abstract, nine articles were reviewed which are full text, peer-reviewed and available free online. All of these studies reported that students were involved in both individual and group learning. Common tools used were individual readiness assessment tools, group readiness assessment, team-based learning (TBL) sessions by the faculty and student’s feedback. All of these nine articles reported that TBL is one of the best methods of teaching for both small and large groups.