Enhancing the effectiveness of direct forms of higher education teaching is a key challenge for many institutions, especially since problem-based learning is not feasible in all circumstances. A number of teaching attributes such as organisation, expressiveness, enthusiasm and rapport/interaction have been found to have a positive relationship with indicators of student learning and student persistence. In reality there is no dichotomy between problem-based learning and “traditional” teaching and learning approaches -policymakers and practitioners would benefit from a better understanding about which specific practices are effective for fostering different skill sets.