Abstract

PINHEIRO, Margarida M.; SARRICO, Cláudia S.  and  SANTIAGO, Rui A.. Self-development competences and PBL in an accounting course: students, tutors, graduates and employers’ perspectives. Rev. Lusófona de Educação [online]. 2011, n.17, pp.147-166. ISSN 1645-7250.

In this work we intend to query the role of a PBL-type methodology in the development of personal competences in the students, and to assess whether the methodology improves the competences of PBL-type graduates when compared to non-PBL graduates, and to approach the role of the methodology at the level of the personal competences in the construction of the profile of a graduate for the third millennium. Having as a point of departure the case study of a vocational higher education institution, we have used the interview technique with academic staff and employers, and the questionnaire technique with the rest of the participants. The results obtained in relation to the students, graduates, and employers led us to support that PBL methodologies contribute to the development of personal competences, essentially at the level of the use of resources and the building of knowledge. Additionally, it seems that we can support the possibility of including in the existing theories the logic of entrepreneurship, motivated by PBL-type methodologies. In the employers we detect a persistent tendency of not recognizing the methodology as being directly responsible for the improvement of personal competences in the graduates, with the exception of the valuation of more consistent basis for action and more confident attitudes. The work also reflects on the problem of identifying the competences necessary for a multifaceted labour market based on concrete studies and results.

Keywords : higher education; PBL; accounting; self-development competences.

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