Improving physiotherapy students' anatomy learning experience and short‐term knowledge retention—An observational study in Malta

Abstract

Anatomy is physiotherapy's foundation. However, undergraduate classroom learning and knowledge acquisition‐retention remain questionable. This study explored the possibility of improving this learning experience and evaluates the gross anatomy of abdomen and pelvis short‐term knowledge retention among first‐year physiotherapy students in Malta. The online Kahoot! game‐based quiz platform was used through an instructor‐designed best‐of‐four multiple‐choice questions. Correctly answered questions and Kahoot! scores generated by the platform were utilized to measure knowledge retention. Kahoot! sessions 1 and 3 shared similar attendance and response rate and were compared together. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare Kahoot! scores and Chi test for trend to compare correctly answered questions. Students' perceived learning experiences before and after the introduction of the Kahoot quizzes were gathered through Likert scores and analyzed using McNamar's chi‐square test. Overall, a significantly increased trend in correctly answered questions (χ2: 23.38, p‐value: <0.001) across the Kahoot! sessions were evident. Four questions out of 12 exhibited significant Kahoot! scores differences. Students reported better learning experiences following the initiation of Kahoot! (χ2: 5.1, p‐value: 0.02). Indeed, all students agreed that the use of the interactive quiz improved their anatomy short term knowledge retention. Introducing an online interactive quiz as part of the lecture program may be useful to improve the learning experience and anatomy knowledge retention among physiotherapy students.

Effectiveness of digital and analog learning methods for learning anatomical structures in physiotherapy education

“…Further research should investigate, whether additional teaching and learning methods like discussion forums, or interactive quizzing situations might be more beneficial for knowledge retention of anatomical structures and enjoyment of learning than the mere tool itself [ 3 – 5 ].…”

“…In 2023, a study used Kahoot! quizzes to promote the learning of anatomical structures with a game-based learning method [ 5 ]. The quizzes contained questions about anatomical structures with four response options and were presented at the end of each lecture.…”

“…Innovative computer-based learning tools can improve the learning of the complex spatial relationships of the musculoskeletal system and facilitate the transfer of anatomical knowledge to patients [ 5 ]. Inaccurate identification of anatomical structures is a common source of error in the assessment and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions, therefore, accurate learning of these, is essential for clinical practice [ 5 ].…”

“…Innovative computer-based learning tools can improve the learning of the complex spatial relationships of the musculoskeletal system and facilitate the transfer of anatomical knowledge to patients [ 5 ]. Inaccurate identification of anatomical structures is a common source of error in the assessment and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions, therefore, accurate learning of these, is essential for clinical practice [ 5 ]. From an educational perspective, interactive learning with 3D visualizations also offers several potential advantages over traditional methods of teaching anatomy: (1) a directly recognizable visualization of anatomical structures, (2) a reduction in cognitive load as students do not need to build their own mental visualization of the model, (3) many different anatomical perspectives and the ability to move the model interactively, and (4) the ability to incorporate 3D models obtained from live human imaging datasets − 2D drawings of anatomical structures are potentially inaccurate [ 5 , 6 ].…”