This report is based on selected data gathered as part of an international project with 2968 South Australian and 5377 Japanese students (10 to 15 years of age). Comparisons between the two countries highlight similarities in the different levels of perceived support from teachers, parents and peers as students progress through the lower to higher year levels at school. The focus of the analyses presented here is on the link between support from teachers and the well-being of students, while the project also considers support from parents and peers. In addition, this paper summarises the literature as to possible barriers to the maintenance of quality teacher-student relationships as students progress through the higher years of middle school settings.

Claims made for the value of problem-based learning (PBL) as an effective method for professional education programmes draw on constructivist principles of teaching and learning to achieve essential content knowledge, higher order thinking skills, and a team approach to problem-solving through the interdisciplinary, student-directed study of relevant professional problems. These essential outcomes of PBL (knowledge, higher order thinking, problem-solving, and effective team skills) are also regarded more generally across higher education as desirable qualities of graduates. The evidence that these qualities are in fact fostered through PBL is growing, but the broader implications (such as the wider impact or more far-reaching effects) of the PBL approach have yet to be examined. This paper addresses the relationship between PBL and graduate qualities in two ways. First, it reports on a study of teacher education students' assessment of their learning through PBL over time, across four areas of skill development: knowledge building; group processes; problem-solving; interpersonal effectiveness. Second, the paper examines these specific outcomes in terms of the more broadly defined qualities expected of Australian university graduates.

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