Philosophical principles for Problem-Based Learning: Freire’s concepts of personal development and social empowerment

This paper explores how the Freirian concepts of personal development and social empowerment provide philosophical principles underpinning our comprehension of the nature and practice of empowerment in problem- based learning. The argument is made that problem-based learning is a subset of Freirian problem-posing education. The implications of these Freirian philosophical principles for PBL practice are discussed in the context of a PBL Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching.