TYPE Systematic Review PUBLISHED 24 May 2023 DOI 10.3389/feduc.2023.1139987 OPEN ACCESS EDITED BY Rita Payan Carreira, University of Évora, Portugal REVIEWED BY Hugo Rebelo, University of Évora, Portugal Jon Mason, Charles Darwin University, Australia *CORRESPONDENCE Zuhana Mohamed Zin zuhana.kl@utm.my RECEIVED 08 January 2023 ACCEPTED 02 May 2023 PUBLISHED 24 May 2023 CITATION Yu L and Zin ZM (2023) The critical thinking-oriented adaptations of problem-based learning models: a systematic review. Front. Educ. 8:1139987. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2023.1139987 COPYRIGHT © 2023 Yu and Zin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. The critical thinking-oriented adaptations of problem-based learning models: a systematic review Ling Yu and Zuhana Mohamed Zin* Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia Critical thinking is a significant twenty-first century skill that is prioritized by higher education. Problem-based learning is becoming widely accepted as an effective way to enhance critical thinking. However, as the results of studies that use PBL to develop CT have had mixed success, PBL models need to be modified to guarantee positive outcomes. This study is a systematic review that analyzed how studies have adapted Problem-Based Learning (PBL) to become more Critical Thinking (CT)-oriented, evaluated the effectiveness of these adaptations, and determined why certain adaptations were successful. The review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) by searching the scientific databases Scopus and Web of Science. Twenty journal articles were chosen based on their adherence to the inclusion criteria established by PICo (Population, Phenomenon of Interest, and Context). In these studies, PBL adaptations were categorized into five classifications, with activities centered on CT development being the most prevalent approach. Researchers utilized a variety of analytical methodologies to assess the effectiveness of these adaptations and derive significant insights and formulate valid conclusions. An analysis of all selected studies revealed positive outcomes, indicating that incorporating CT elements into PBL was effective in enhancing students’ CT. These findings were categorized into nine factors that contribute to the successful adaptation of PBL to be CT-oriented. KEYWORDS higher education, problem-based learning, critical thinking, educational intervention, systematic review, pedagogical adaption 1. Introduction The twenty-first century is an era of innovation, requiring individuals to possess skills for academic excellence, success in the workplace, and the capability to cope with life. Examples of such transferable skills include communication, collaboration, creativity, problem- solving, and critical thinking (CT) (Hidayati et al., 2022). Of these, CT is frequently cited as the most crucial (National Association of Colleges Employers, 2016) for individuals to adapt to this quickly changing society (Alper, 2010). Universities view the development of students’ CT skills as one of their most significant educational objectives (Facione, 2011; Erikson and Erikson, 2019) and must therefore continually refine their teaching techniques (Bezanilla et al., 2019) and establish a learning environment that improves students’ CT capabilities (Evendi et al., 2022). In this way, universities can foster twenty-first-century talents with extraordinary academic performance and excellent professional skills (Hidayati et al., 2022). Frontiers in Education 01 frontiersin.org