Dataset Information

Training Medical Student Facilitators of Peer-Assisted Study Sessions Using an Objective Standardized Teaching Exercise.

ABSTRACT: Introduction:Peer-assisted study sessions (P.A.S.S.) are medical student-facilitated small-group sessions that aim to improve students' knowledge and performance in preclinical courses. Peer teaching has been shown to have a positive impact on academic performance of both learners and peer teachers. For peer teaching to be more effective, there is a need for training of peer teachers. We developed a facilitator training workshop to help to improve medical students' confidence in serving as P.A.S.S. facilitators. Methods:Participants were first-year medical students who were approved to become P.A.S.S. facilitators. We recruited facilitators to attend a training workshop and provided them with a training manual to use during the training session and as a resource after the session. We recruited five standardized students to participate in an objective standardized teaching exercise (OSTE). We asked facilitators to complete pre/post surveys before and after the workshop to indicate their level of confidence in facilitating the sessions and provide feedback on the workshop. Results:Nine P.A.S.S. facilitators participated in the training session. Analysis of pre- and postworkshop survey data showed a statistically significant increase in student confidence (p ? .02). Discussion:Developing and implementing a formalized P.A.S.S. facilitator training manual and workshop with an OSTE helped improve students' confidence in facilitating an organized, effective, and interactive peer teaching session. Students' positive feedback on the OSTE suggests that OSTEs can be useful tools to help peer teachers learn skills to cope with challenging situations with students.

SUBMITTER: Whitmill A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7328851 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Training Medical Student Facilitators of Peer-Assisted Study Sessions Using an Objective Standardized Teaching Exercise.

Whitmill Amber A Edwards Terri T Charles Stephen S

MedEdPORTAL : the journal of teaching and learning resources 20200515

<h4>Introduction</h4>Peer-assisted study sessions (P.A.S.S.) are medical student-facilitated small-group sessions that aim to improve students' knowledge and performance in preclinical courses. Peer teaching has been shown to have a positive impact on academic performance of both learners and peer teachers. For peer teaching to be more effective, there is a need for training of peer teachers. We developed a facilitator training workshop to help to improve medical students' confidence in serving ...[more]

PMID: 32656319

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Project description:Peer-assisted learning (PAL) is the development of new knowledge and skills through active learning support from peers. Benefits of PAL include introduction of teaching skills for students, creation of a safe learning environment, and efficient use of faculty time. We present a novel approach to PAL in an emergency medicine (EM) clerkship curriculum using an inexpensive, tablet-based app for students to cooperatively present and perform low-fidelity, case-based simulations that promotes accountability for student learning, fosters teaching skills, and economizes faculty presence.We developed five clinical cases in the style of EM oral boards. Fourth-year medical students were each assigned a unique case one week in advance. Students also received an instructional document and a video example detailing how to lead a case. During the 90-minute session, students were placed in small groups of 3-5 students and rotated between facilitating their assigned cases and participating as a team for the cases presented by their fellow students. Cases were supplemented with a half-mannequin that can be intubated, airway supplies, and a tablet-based app (SimMon, $22.99) to remotely display and update vital signs. One faculty member rotated among groups to provide additional assistance and clarification. Three EM faculty members iteratively developed a survey, based on the literature and pilot tested it with fourth-year medical students, to evaluate the course.135 medical students completed the course and course evaluation survey. Learner satisfaction was high with an overall score of 4.6 on a 5-point Likert scale. In written comments, students reported that small groups with minimal faculty involvement provided a safe learning environment and a unique opportunity to lead a group of peers. They felt that PAL was more effective than traditional simulations for learning. Faculty reported that students remained engaged and required minimal oversight.Unlike other simulations, our combination of brief, student-assisted cases using low-fidelity simulation provides a cost-, resource- and time-effective way to implement a medical student clerkship educational experience.

Project description:BackgroundNear-peer teaching (NPT) is becoming an increasingly popular pedagogical tool in health professions education. Despite the shift in formal medical education from face-to-face teaching toward encompassing web-based learning activities, NPT has not experienced a similar transition. Apart from the few reports on NPT programs hastily converted to web-based learning in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, no studies to date have explored web-based learning in the specific context of NPT.ObjectiveThis qualitative study examined the nature of interactions among peer learners (PLs), peer teachers (PTs), and the learning content in a student-led, web-based NPT program for medical students.MethodsA 5-month-long voluntary NPT program to support first- and second-year medical students' biomedical science learning in the undergraduate medical curriculum was designed by 2 senior-year medical students and delivered by 25 PTs with 84 PLs participating. In total, 9 PLs and 3 PTs underwent individual semistructured interviews at the end of the program to explore general NPT experience, reasons for joining NPT, the effectiveness of NPT, the demand and importance of NPT, and the feasibility of incorporating NPT in the formal curriculum. Interview transcripts were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach.ResultsThe first general theme focused on the nature of student-student, student-teacher, and student-content interactions. Although PLs were engaged in web-based NPT, there was minimal interaction between students, as most PLs preferred to learn passively and remain anonymous. PLs believed the web-based NPT learning process to be a unidirectional transmission of knowledge from teacher to learner, with the teacher responsible for driving the interactions. This was in sharp contrast to PTs' expectation that both parties shared responsibility for learning in a collaborative effort. The second general theme identified the advantages and disadvantages of delivering NPT on a web platform, which were mainly convenience and teaching skills development and poor interactivity, respectively.ConclusionsStudent-led, web-based NPT offers a flexible and comfortable means of delivering academic and nonacademic guidance to medical students. However, the web-based mode of delivery presents unique challenges in facilitating meaningful interactions among PLs, PTs, and subject content. A blended learning approach may be best suited for this form of student-led NPT program to optimize its efficacy.

Dataset Information

Training Medical Student Facilitators of Peer-Assisted Study Sessions Using an Objective Standardized Teaching Exercise.

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Training Medical Student Facilitators of Peer-Assisted Study Sessions Using an Objective Standardized Teaching Exercise.

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