Team-Based Learning in Undergraduate STEM Education: A Systematic Review of Implementation Practices and Student Outcomes
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2026-05-15
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<jats:p>Team-based learning (TBL) is a popular form of collaborative learning designed to increase student engagement and motivate students to learn. A growing body of research, particularly in the health sciences, has demonstrated that TBL has positive impacts on student performance and classroom dynamics. However, much less is known about the student outcomes associated with TBL courses in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, fields in which active learning is especially important for student success and retention. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic review of the student outcomes associated with TBL in undergraduate STEM education. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method, we identified 55 empirical and qualitative research articles published between 2005 and 2024 that reported on TBL implementation practices and student outcomes. Importantly, we found that most studies described increased student performance and improved measures of classroom dynamics when TBL was compared to lecture-based teaching approaches. These findings provide further evidence that TBL is an effective instructional method and suggest that TBL can be implemented successfully across a wide range of student populations and undergraduate STEM disciplines.</jats:p>
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Koch, Benjamin T, Nicholas Chrapliwy, Minna Ng and Thomas M Newpher (2026). Team-Based Learning in Undergraduate STEM Education: A Systematic Review of Implementation Practices and Student Outcomes. International Journal of Educational Methodology, 12(2). pp. 99–117. 10.12973/ijem.12.2.99 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/34677.
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Thomas Mark Newpher
I teach, mentor, and advise in Duke’s Neuroscience major and serve as the Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies in Neuroscience. I also direct the Duke Summer Neuroscience Program, which provides research and professional development opportunities for undergraduate fellows. I earned my B.A. in Biology from Thiel College and my Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Microbiology from Case Western Reserve University. In addition, I received postdoctoral training in the Departments of Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Duke University, where my research focused on the molecular mechanisms that underlie learning-related synaptic plasticity.
As a faculty member in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience I teach several courses, including Introduction to Neurobiology (NEUROSCI 223), Introduction to Systems Neuroscience (NEUROSCI 206L), Contemporary Neuroscience Methods (NEUROSCI 376), Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (NEUROSCI 461S), and Neuroplasticity and Disease (NEUROSCI 353S). My courses use a variety of team-based learning activities to promote critical thinking skills, foster collaboration among students, and create an engaging, student-centered classroom experience. As a co-PI in the Duke Team-Based Learning lab, I study the impacts of collaborative learning on student performance and classroom dynamics.
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