The hidden curriculum in undergraduate medical education: qualitative study of medical students' perceptions of teaching.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Objective
To study medical students' views about the quality of the teaching they receive during their undergraduate training, especially in terms of the hidden curriculum.Design
Semistructured interviews with individual students.Setting
One medical school in the United Kingdom.Participants
36 undergraduate medical students, across all stages of their training, selected by random and quota sampling, stratified by sex and ethnicity, with the whole medical school population as a sampling frame.Main outcome measures
Medical students' experiences and perceptions of the quality of teaching received during their undergraduate training.Results
Students reported many examples of positive role models and effective, approachable teachers, with valued characteristics perceived according to traditional gendered stereotypes. They also described a hierarchical and competitive atmosphere in the medical school, in which haphazard instruction and teaching by humiliation occur, especially during the clinical training years.Conclusions
Following on from the recent reforms of the manifest curriculum, the hidden curriculum now needs attention to produce the necessary fundamental changes in the culture of undergraduate medical education.
SUBMITTER: Lempp H
PROVIDER: S-EPMC520997 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Similar Datasets
Project description:BackgroundThere is increasing interest in global health teaching among medical schools and their students. Schools in the UK and internationally are considering the best structure, methods and content of global health courses. Academic work in this area, however, has tended to either be normative (specifying what global health teaching ought to look like) or descriptive (of a particular intervention, new module, elective, etc.).MethodsWhile a number of studies have explored student perspectives on global health teaching, these have often relied on tools such as questionnaires that generate little in-depth evidence. This study instead used qualitative methods to explore medical student perspectives on global health in the context of a new global health module established in the core medical curriculum at a UK medical school.ResultsFifth year medical students participated in a structured focus group session and semi-structured interviews designed to explore their knowledge and learning about global health issues, as well as their wider perspectives on these issues and their relevance to professional development. While perspectives on global health ranged from global health 'advocate' to 'sceptic', all of the students acknowledged the challenges of prioritising global health within a busy curriculum.ConclusionsStudents are highly alert to the diverse epistemological issues that underpin global health. For some students, such interdisciplinarity is fundamental to understanding contemporary health and healthcare. For others, global health is merely a topic of geographic relevance. Furthermore, some students appeared to accept global health as a specialist area only relevant to professionals working overseas, while others considered it to be an essential part of working in the globalised world and therefore relevant to all medical professionals. Students also clearly noted that including 'soft' subjects and more discursive approaches to teaching and learning often sits awkwardly in a programme where 'harder' forms of knowledge and didactic methods tend to dominate. This suggests that more work needs to be done to explain the relevance of global health to medical students at the very beginning of their studies.
| S-EPMC6543666 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundAutistic adults and children experience considerable health inequalities and have high rates of premature mortality, hospital admissions and emergency department visits. This is in part due to a lack of autism awareness in the healthcare and social care workforce. A new educational programme, Time for Autism (TfA), for medical students is being developed to address this challenge. This qualitative study was undertaken to support the development of the new programme in order to (1) understand the medical care experiences of parents of autistic children and (2) assess their views on the acceptability of the new TfA programme and willingness to be involved.MethodsA convenience sample of 11 parents of autistic children were recruited across the South of England. The ages of the autistic children ranged from 3 to 17 years. Semistructured interviews were completed between October and December 2019. Interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsThree key themes were identified: diagnosis, experiences of doctors and TfA considerations. There was support for and willingness to take part in a dedicated autism education programme for medical students, and constructive feedback to inform and improve its delivery.ConclusionThe findings from this study provide insights into the medical care experiences of parents/carers of autistic children. Understanding how parents/carers of autistic children would like medical care to be improved can be used to develop TfA and other autism programmes. Parental/carer support for the development of and involvement in an autism medical education programme enhances the feasibility of the new programme.
| S-EPMC9345079 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMedical education all over the country has been forced to shift to e-learning, mainly online classes. In this scenario, the medical education department (MEU) of a teaching hospital under a deemed university felt the need to study the satisfaction and usefulness of these classes, as perceived by the undergraduate medical students.MethodsQuestionnaire survey was planned. A specially designed questionnaire was created, keeping in mind, the study objectives. It was validated, and a pilot was conducted, for modifications and to calculate sample size. The questionnaire was administered by email as Google Forms. The responses, which included quantitative and qualitative responses, were analysed, and feedback points noted. Percentage level of satisfaction and usefulness was calculated with 95% confidence interval. To test the statistical significance of the association of satisfaction levels amongst students of different Phases, chi square test was used.ResultsOn a scale scoring for satisfaction, 53.6% scored moderate, 31% high, and 15.4% low satisfaction. 49.8% of the students were less satisfied about attending classes from home; 15.7% felt it was better. 57.1% of the students found the concept of online learning moderately useful, 31.4% found it minimally useful, 11.5%, highly useful.ConclusionsThe undergraduate medical students perceived moderate satisfaction and usefulness with the on-going online classes. They expressed the desire to resume routine physical classes, especially for practicals and clinics. Points of improvement of the online teaching-learning programme were also obtained. This study revealed sufficient feedback to be shared with all stakeholders, regarding improvements in the online classes.
| S-EPMC7873757 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundDermatology teaching is fundamental for the promotion of young colleagues in our specialty. However, traditional teaching methods are being scrutinized by students of the 'Generation Y and Z', which can pose new challenges for teaching institutions. We therefore aimed to assess the motivational impact and reception of a newly created four-week curriculum containing modernized teaching methods integrated into clinical routine.MethodsIn this single-center study, 67 medical students completed this curriculum composed of weekly learning objectives including knowledge of morphological terms, 10 common dermatoses, communication and presentation skills. The participants provided information on their level of interest in dermatology each week as well as positive and negative aspects of the curriculum.ResultsDuring the curriculum a significant median increase in interest in dermatology was reported with no differences between the genders. Low initial interest could be improved, high initial interest maintained. Participants with an interest in scientific work (20.9%) were more motivated during the curriculum. The variety, quality of teaching and structure were the main aspects rated positively. Suggestions for improvement included the need for more teaching by senior doctors, transfer of responsibility, and a working environment updated to the latest technology standards.ConclusionThe presented curriculum was well received by the participants and allowed to better define learning preferences of new generations which can be helpful to modernize traditional teaching methods. Interest in scientific work could be a factor to identify students with a particularly strong interest in dermatology.
| S-EPMC10848555 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background Medical ethics is a vital quality for the doctors which has been seriously taken into consideration in recent years. Identifying the factors affecting medical ethics may help to develop more effective ways to promote this quality in medical education. This study was aimed to explain the challenges of hidden curriculum in learning the professional ethics among Iranian medical students. Materials and Methods This qualitative study was performed on 15 medical interns of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences in 2019 using grounded theory (GT). Sampling was started by purposive sampling and continued through theoretical sampling until complete data saturation. Data collection and analysis were done simultaneously. Data were interpreted by the constant comparative method according to Strauss and Corbin’s approach. Results The results showed that the challenges of hidden curriculum for learning the professional ethics by medical students included a number of key concepts. Analyzing these concepts and taking into account the commonalities, we obtained six subthemes using a reduction inductive method, the main theme of which was “the challenge of hidden curriculum in learning the professional medical ethics”. The subthemes included “decreased interest in medicine”, “false beliefs”, “curriculum weakness”, “materialism and economic problems”, “avoidance of responsibility”, and “underlying problems of the medical profession”. Conclusion The findings indicated six challenges in the hidden curriculum for learning the professional medical ethics. These challenges can be considered a threat or an obstacle to achieving the goals of professional ethics. Therefore, curriculum planners, education policymakers, and teachers should plan and implement the professional ethics curriculum based on these factors.
| S-EPMC7523179 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC10913502 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Introduction: The Clinical Presentation (CP) curriculum was first formulated in 1990 at the University of Calgary, Canada. Since then, it has been adopted at various medical schools, including Patan Academy of Health Sciences (PAHS), a state-funded medical school in a low-income country (LIC), Nepal. This study aims to evaluate the perceived effectiveness of the CP curriculum by students and faculty at PAHS, and test knowledge retention through a surprise non-routine exam administered to students. Method: This is a cross-sectional study to evaluate the efficacy of the CP curriculum in teaching clinical medicine to the first batch of MBBS students of PAHS School of Medicine. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Committee (IRC)-PAHS (Ref no std1505911069). Perceived effectiveness was evaluated using a set of questionnaires for faculty and students. A total of 33 students and 34 faculty filled the perception questionnaires. Subsequently, a questionnaire consisting of 50 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) from different clinical medicine disciplines was administered to test students' knowledge retention. Out of 49 students, 38 participated in the surprise non-routine exam. Result: A significantly higher number of faculty preferred the CP curriculum compared to the traditional system of teaching clinical medicine (16 vs 11, Kruskal Wallis: 0.023, ie. P-value < 0.05). A significantly higher number of the students liked and recommended CP curriculum in the clinical year of medical education (20 vs. 13 with p-value < 0.05). In the non-routine surprise exam, two thirds of the students scored 60% or above. Conclusion: Both faculty and students perceive that the CP curriculum system is an effective teaching and learning method in medical education, irrespective of their different demographic and positional characteristics. The students' overall performance was good in surprise, non-routine exams taken without scheduling or reminders.
| S-EPMC8968744 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Objective:To explore problems faced by struggling undergraduate medical students and their impact on student's academics. Methods:A qualitative case study was carried out from March to August 2019. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of sixteen struggling students. The interview questions were validated and then piloted to ensure clarity. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Due to sensitive nature of the data, confidentiality and anonymity was ensured. Thematic analysis was employed to get meaning with in the data set. All authors ensured analytical triangulation by independently analyzing the data before developing consensus on the codes and themes. Results:Eleven sub-themes under four major themes emerged from the transcripts. Participants were found to be struggling with emotional, academics and family related problems. Psychological distress was caused by factors such as fight with friends, one-sided love, and hard financial times. Time management, lack of attention and commitments at home were few of the other problems. Problems had an impact on students as they were demotivated, lost focus in their studies, could not perform good and few participants even failed in examinations. Conclusions:Students were struggling more with emotional and family related problems and less with academics related problems. They were impacting student's academics. The study site had a robust mentoring program however, struggling students need timely identification and more dedicated time to help them manage their problems. Stress relieving activities and counselling sessions may frequently be added, and academically underachieved students should also be given extra care, support, and guidance.
| S-EPMC7372650 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To evaluate the merit of the Clinical Audit Project (CAP) in an assessment program for undergraduate medical education using a systematic assessment validation framework.A cross-sectional assessment validation study at one medical school in Western Australia, with retrospective qualitative analysis of the design, development, implementation and outcomes of the CAP, and quantitative analysis of assessment data from four cohorts of medical students (2011- 2014).The CAP is fit for purpose with clear external and internal alignment to expected medical graduate outcomes. Substantive validity in students' and examiners' response processes is ensured through relevant methodological and cognitive processes. Multiple validity features are built-in to the design, planning and implementation process of the CAP. There is evidence of high internal consistency reliability of CAP scores (Cronbach's alpha > 0.8) and inter-examiner consistency reliability (intra-class correlation>0.7). Aggregation of CAP scores is psychometrically sound, with high internal consistency indicating one common underlying construct. Significant but moderate correlations between CAP scores and scores from other assessment modalities indicate validity of extrapolation and alignment between the CAP and the overall target outcomes of medical graduates. Standard setting, score equating and fair decision rules justify consequential validity of CAP scores interpretation and use.This study provides evidence demonstrating that the CAP is a meaningful and valid component in the assessment program. This systematic framework of validation can be adopted for all levels of assessment in medical education, from individual assessment modality, to the validation of an assessment program as a whole.
| S-EPMC5056027 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectiveTo explore undergraduate medical students' attitudes towards and opinions about leadership and management education.DesignBetween 2009 and 2012 we conducted a qualitative study comprising five focus group discussions, each devoted to one of the five domains in the Medical Leadership Competency Framework, (Personal Qualities, Working with Others, Managing Services, Improving Services and Setting Direction). Each discussion examined what should be learnt, when should learning occur, what methods should be used, how should learning be assessed, what are the barriers to such education.Participants28 students from all three clinical years (4-6) of whom 10 were women.Results2 inter-related themes emerged: understanding the broad perspective of patients and other stakeholders involved in healthcare provision and the need to make leadership and management education relevant in the clinical context. Topics suggested by students included structure of the National Health Service (NHS), team working skills, decision-making and negotiating skills. Patient safety was seen as particularly important. Students preferred experiential learning, with placements seen as providing teaching opportunities. Structured observation, reflection, critical appraisal and analysis of mistakes at all levels were mentioned as existing opportunities for integrating leadership and management education. Students' views about assessment and timing of such education were mixed. Student feedback figured prominently as a method of delivery and a means of assessment, while attitudes of medical professionals, students and of society in general were seen as barriers.ConclusionsMedical students may be more open to leadership and management education than thought hitherto. These findings offer insights into how students view possible developments in leadership and management education and stress the importance of developing broad perspectives and clinical relevance in this context.
| S-EPMC4078777 | biostudies-literature