This study shows that during clinical clerkships, students actively seek feedback according to personal and interpersonal factors. Perceived costs and benefits influenced this active feedback-seeking behaviour. These results may contribute towards the optimising and developing of meaningful educational opportunities during clerkships.

Teachers' feedback-giving behaviour within the clinical context results from the interaction between personal, interpersonal and contextual factors. Increasing insight into how teachers use mini-CEX instruments in daily practice may offer strategies for creating a professional learning culture in which feedback giving and seeking would be enhanced.

Modern learning theories stress the importance of student-centered and self-directed learning. Problem-Based Learning (PBL) supports this by focusing on small group learning centered around authentic problems. PBL, however, usually relies heavily on face-to-face team collaboration and tutor guidance.  Yet, when applied in online/blended environments, such elements may not be feasible or even desirable. This study explores how virtual teams collaborate in online learning tasks in the context of a nine-week Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) where international, virtual teams worked on PBL-like tasks. Twenty-one self-formed teams were observed.  An inductive thematic analysis resulted in five themes: 1) team formation and team composition, 2) team process (organization and leadership), 3) approach to task work (task division and interaction), 4) use of tools, and 5) external factors (MOOC design and interaction with others). Overall findings revealed that online, virtual teams can collaborate on learning tasks without extensive guidance, but this requires additional communication and technological skills and support. Explicit discussion about group organization and task work, a positive atmosphere, and acceptance of unequal contributions seem to be positive factors. Additional support is required to prepare participants for virtual team work, develop digital literacy, and stimulate more elaborate brainstorming and discussion.

Background: Many medical and veterinary schools have curricula in which they use seminars of approximately 25 students to achieve their learning goals. There is not much research on seminar learning. Aim: To explore students' views regarding aspects that affect seminar learning. Methods: Twenty-four second-year students of a 3-year bachelor curriculum participated in semi-structured focus group interviews. The sessions were audio-taped and transcribed. Two researchers independently coded the data using qualitative methods. An iterative process of data reduction resulted in emerging aspects. The participating students were asked to comment on the preliminary results. Results: Course schedule, coherence and alignment of the different educational methods, the amount and type of seminar questions and the amount and clarity of the preparation materials affected seminar learning. Also, the didactic approach and facilitating methods used by the teachers, the group composition, size and atmosphere, the amount of active student participation and interaction and assessment influenced seminar learning according to students. Conclusion: Most aspects that affect seminar learning are consistent with aspects affecting small group learning. Course schedule and alignment seem to have a stronger impact on seminar learning.

BackgroundMany medical schools have embraced small group learning methods in their undergraduate curricula. Given increasing financial constraints on universities, active learning groups like seminars (with 25 students a group) are gaining popularity. To enhance the understanding of seminar learning and to determine how seminar learning can be optimised it is important to investigate stakeholders’ views. In this study, we qualitatively explored the views of teachers on aspects affecting seminar learning.MethodsTwenty-four teachers with experience in facilitating seminars in a three-year bachelor curriculum participated in semi-structured focus group interviews. Three focus groups met twice with an interval of two weeks led by one moderator. Sessions were audio taped, transcribed verbatim and independently coded by two researchers using thematic analysis. An iterative process of data reduction resulted in emerging aspects that influence seminar learning.ResultsTeachers identified seven key aspects affecting seminar learning: the seminar teacher, students, preparation, group functioning, seminar goals and content, course coherence and schedule and facilities. Important components of these aspects were: the teachers’ role in developing seminars (‘ownership’), the amount and quality of preparation materials, a non-threatening learning climate, continuity of group composition, suitability of subjects for seminar teaching, the number and quality of seminar questions, and alignment of different course activities.ConclusionsThe results of this study contribute to the unravelling of the ‘the black box’ of seminar learning. Suggestions for ways to optimise active learning in seminars are made regarding curriculum development, seminar content, quality assurance and faculty development.