The objective of this study was to establish the perceptions, expectations, apprehensions and realities of South Africa optometry students completing their undergraduate studies in 2006. Copies of a questionnaire containing relevant information were distributed to all graduating students at the four Universities offering Optometry. The responses were coded and analyzed. The respondents (N=143), representing 77% of the graduating students included 27.3% males and 72.7% females, aged 20 to 37 years (mean = 23.34 ± 2.75). About a third (32.9%) of the respondents considered opening their own practice as the best way of entering into practice. Also, this mode of practice was considered as providing the greatest fulfilment for their personal (60.8%) and professional (53.8%) goals as well as offering long term financial security (43.7%). Many (56.6%) have secured employment before graduation. Upon graduation, 43.4% would like to join a franchise. Many (79.7%) felt that Government was not offering sufficient opportunities for optometrists. The majority, (70.6%) felt that the South African optometry profession is fastly becoming saturated and this was of great concern to many (31.5%). About half, (50.3%) have plans to go overseas to practice and the most common destinations were the UK (36.1%) and Australia (15%). The mean minimum monthly salary expected as new graduates was between R9 500 and R11 500 in the public and private sectors respectively. On a response scale, the future of optometry in South Africa was scored as 6.59 ± 1.92. Findings in this study may be useful to all stake holders in optometric education in South Africa, as they may reflect the future of the optometry profession in the country.
This study aimed at describing how well the goals of a peer teaching initiative implemented over a two-year period were achieved at a South African medical school from the students' perspective. We conducted a mixed method study to elicit the perspectives of 5th year medical students who had recently completed a course that involved peer teaching during the 2016 academic year. Participants were purposefully sampled, and data were collected through focus group discussion (FGD) for the qualitative phase, and semi-structured questionnaires for the quantitative phase of the study. The FGDs were audiotaped, transcribed, and analyzed thematically, using an inductive approach to identify the emerging themes. The quantitative data obtained from the semi-structured questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive analysis, and the results presented in percentages and frequencies. A total of twenty-seven respondents took part in three FGDs, each group comprised nine participants. The number of completed semi-structured questionnaires were sixty-six. Three major themes emerged from the results namely, being a peer teacher, being a peer learner, and students' recommendations. The results showed that the implementation of peer teaching exercise motivated active learning among the students who 'taught' their peers, firstly, through their preparation for the peer teaching activity and secondly through the actual teaching itself. However, this kind of motivation was not reported by the participants who were not opportune to 'teach' during the exercise. The implementation of peer teaching model is effective in promoting active learning among medical students. Further research is needed to refine the strategies adopted and to identify alternative activities other than "teaching" during peer teaching exercise.
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