Perception about Teaching and Learning Methodologies Applied in Physiology, A study on Medical Students of Pakistan

Physiology 2021 (2021) Proc Physiol Soc 48, PC010

Poster Communications: Perception about Teaching and Learning Methodologies Applied in Physiology, A study on Medical Students of Pakistan

Dr Qudsia Umaira Khan1, Hameyl Tahir2, Abdur Rafae Ahmad3

1 Dr Qudsia Umaira Khan, CMH Lahore Medical college and IOD, Pakistan 2 Hameyl Tahir, Lahore, Pakistan 3 Abdur Rafae Ahmad, Lahore, Pakistan

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INTRODUCTION  The study of physiology is an essential part of the medical school curriculum. Medical teachers have identified the preference for a specific mode of content delivery to communicate knowledge to students in a rational, strategic, coherent, and sequential manner. In comparison to the focus on systems-based didactic lectures, more emphasis is now put on the developing critical thinking skills. Physiology is widely acknowledged as a difficult subject for medical students to grasp, incorporate, and apply in clinical sciences. Physiology is taught using a variety of teaching and learning methods, including formal interactive sessions (SIS), interactive lectures (IL), problem-based learning (PBL), and case-based lectures (CBL) Teachers are better able to keep students interested and inspired in the classroom when lectures are well planned. Physiology is interesting and preferred subject. The primary goal of medical education should be a holistic approach that improves medical professionals’ problem-solving abilities through analytical and rational thought. AIM &OBJECTIVES Until now, no research in Pakistan has evaluated whether current teaching, learning, and assessment methods are effective enough to impart information for effective learning. The aim of this study is to learn about students’ perceptions of teaching, learning, and assessment approaches used in the physiology. METHOD A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted online on 533 medical students from first to final year and also post graduate students in Pakistan. After the approval of the Ethical review committee of CMH Lahore Medical College, an online questionnaire made on “Google forms” was circulated to evaluate the various aspects of Physiology as a subject being taught. Cronbach’s Alpha (81%) established the questionnaire’s reliability which revealed  excellent  uniformity in the data received from   responses by students .Participants answered anonymously with informed consent, and the survey was conducted for a period of two months. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 23 RESULTS A total number of 533 students participated in this research and responded to Physiology learning and teaching. It was noteworthy to find out that the majority of students, 46% (n=246) claimed Anatomy to be the most interesting subject in 1st year MBBS which was closely followed by Physiology that 41.9% (n=224) participants selected. A similar result was also observed in another study by Rajesh K Jha in Nepal in 2015.With regards to their preferred medium of teaching, a large majority opted for traditional face to face lectures (43.7%, n=234) over online only lectures (5.2%, n=28). The likely cause for the lack of popularity of online classes can be attributed greatly to lower peer interaction, less satisfactory rapport with instructors and lower self-perceived knowledge gains. Preferred study material for most students was their college assigned textbook, “Guyton and Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology” (63.2%, n=637). It is interesting to note however, that only 9% of students claimed to rely on internet-based mediums of learning such as YouTube channels. This offers some degree of contrast to previous studies where internet resources are utilized quite often as supplementary aids. When asked whether students would wish to pursue physiology as a career option in the future, the largest response stated it was unsure (47.2%, n=252), with 32.6% (n=174) responding in the negative and only 20.2% (n=107) in the affirmative. A study in 2014 by Arun Kumar cites that a common reason for this is that most students tend to prefer the clinical subjects encountered in the later years as worthwhile career options over the basic sciences. The most important aspect of our research was to evaluate students’ perception of learning and teaching methodologies used in physiology class. We asked 16 closed-ended questions assessing the general perception of students related to this topic. The result is summarized as follows in Table 1: Where as in Table 11 we have discussed the conceptual development and learning, mean rank of response of interactive sessions compared with lectures, structured  Interactive    sessions (SIS )and case based lectures or Problem based learning using Friedman test. P value considered significant* at <0.05 Table 1: Assessing the general perception of students related to Physiology Question Yes No Are you interested in Physiology? 88.0% 12.0% Revision is required at the end of the lecture. 83.0% 17.0% Do you like the way your physiology practical are conducted? 63.0% 37.0% My teacher seems to know if something is bothering me. 47.1% 52.9% In this class, my teacher accepts nothing less than our full effort. 69.5% 30.5% My teacher asks questions to be sure we are following when she/he is teaching. 81.1% 18.9% My teacher wants me to explain my answers -why I think what I think. 73.5% 26.5% Our class stays busy and does not waste time. 57.9% 42.1% If I don't understand something, my teacher explains it another way. 77.4% 22.6% My teacher knows when the class understands, and when we do not. 65.6% 34.4% I like the ways we learn in this class. 65.2% 34.8% This class does not keep my attention -I get bored. 51.6% 48.4% My teachers makes lessons interesting and innovative. 63.6% 36.4% Students speak up and share their ideas about class work. 64.3% 35.7% My teacher takes the time to summarize what we learn each day 71.0% 29.0% The comments that I get on my work help me understand how to improve 77.0% 23.0%                                                     Table 2: Use Of Teaching Methodologies (Lectures, Structured Interactive Session Sis .Case Based Lectures and PBL Sessions   Teaching Methodology   Lectures   Structured  Interactive    sessions(SIS)   Case Based Lectures/Problem  Based   P value Face to face Active learning 1.86 2.11 2.06 0.153 Small group discussion 1.80 2.12 2.10 <0.01* Practical 1.70 2.22 2.18 <0.01* Tutorials 1.76 2.07 2.24 <0.01* Assessments and Viva 1.87 2.12 2.10 <0.01* Assignments 1.90 2.21 1.89 <0.01*                                 Figure 1: Which Teaching method you like for better understanding of the topic?     Figure 2: Year of Study   CONCLUSION Physiology, science of life, is a discipline of biology whose goal is to comprehend the mechanisms of living things, from the ionic and molecular basis of cell activity to the integrated behaviour of the entire body and the impact of the external environment. The students overall considered their Physiology course satisfactory. Most of the participants were happy with the current teaching and learning methodologies being employed in their Physiology class but were open to their combination with multimedia aids and modern techniques. Barriers such as student teacher communication may also need to be addressed. This may allow teachers to engage their students better in the lecture and facilitate their understanding of the concepts to a greater degree.  



Where applicable, experiments conform with Society ethical requirements.

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