Assessment of impact of small group teaching among students in community medicine

Abstract

Background:We conducted a study to assess the impact of small group teaching (SGT) among students by feedback analysis to identify intricacy so that learning can be facilitated.Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study was undertaken among 182 MBBS students studying at a teaching hospital at Gangtok. Students were provided with a questionnaire following an assignment on a scheduled topic. Students were asked to provide feedback on the modes of teaching-learning practiced in community medicine with the parameters of evaluation including assessment of presentation by faculty member in reference to relevance, sequencing, depth, interaction, etc., to the overall rating of presentations in different teaching–learning methods.Results:The faculty members were on the positive evaluation by the students in the SGT, which was preferred over lectures as the teaching–learning methods. Among SGTs “tutorials” were graded better than “practical”, “seminar” and “field posting” on the basis of longer duration at a stretch. Among the parameters for evaluation, relevance, depth, and interaction in regard to scheduled topic of presentations, the rating was significantly higher in SGT than different other teaching–learning methods. Largely the students noted that the time devoted and number of hours/sessions allotted for each topic was adequate.Conclusion:All forms of SGT were on the positive appraisal by the students on their learning experience and were considered as a comprehensive tool for in-depth teacher–student interaction.

Assessment of educational outcomes of small group discussion versus traditional lecture format among undergraduate medical students

“…The educational outcomes of our study were more or less quite similar with the finding of Forristall et al, O"Neil et al, Steinert et al in their study. [7][8][9][10] Students perception & feedback in present study was very significant & relatively similar perception was observed by Pal et al 12 Our results are also comparable to the ones obtained from the study by Hammed et al where the undergraduate medical students of one batch were taught by small group discussions (SGD), it was found that they performed better than their previous batches who were taught by traditional lecture methods. 13 Similar results were also found in studies conducted by Tiwari et al 14 These findings may be considered in line with findings by Cendan et al, where in students reported more satisfaction with the small group teaching environment.…”

A comparative assessment of the impact of computer assisted learning of knowledge and skill based competencies among undergraduate students in a medical college in South India

“…6,7 The effectiveness of small group teaching against didactic lectures has also been well documented. 8,9 Studies have pointed out the importance and usefulness of teaching modules, for better understanding and retainment of knowledge. It is insufficient to just develop computerbased learning material available to students.…”

Holistic Approach of Teaching of Gross Pathological Specimen for 2nd Professional MBBS Students

“…3,4 and better student satisfaction. 3,5,6,7 but not in terms of factual knowledge and assessment scores. 3,8,9 The present study is based on small group discussion and e-learning.…”