Interactive radiological anatomy eLearning solution for first year medical students: Development, integration, and impact on learning

Abstract

A technology enhanced learning and teaching (TELT) solution, radiological anatomy (RA) eLearning, composed of a range of identification-based and guided learning activities related to normal and pathological X-ray images, was devised for the Year 1 nervous and locomotor course at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton. Its effectiveness was evaluated using a questionnaire, pre- and post-tests, focus groups, summative assessment, and tracking data. Since introduced in 2009, a total of 781 students have used RA eLearning, and among them 167 Year 1 students in 2011, of whom 116 participated in the evaluation study. Students enjoyed learning (77%) with RA eLearning, found it was easy to use (81%) and actively engaged them in their learning (75%), all of which were associated to the usability, learning design of the TELT solution and its integration in the curriculum; 80% of students reported RA eLearning helped their revision of anatomy and 69% stated that it facilitated their application of anatomy in a clinical context, both of which were associated with the benefits offered by the learning and activities design. At the end of course summative assessment, student knowledge of RA eLearning relevant topics (mean 80%; SD ±16) was significantly better as compared to topics not relevant to RA eLearning (mean 63%; SD ±15) (mean difference 18%; 95% CI 15% to 20%; P < 0.001). A well designed and integrated TELT solution can be an efficient method for facilitating the application, integration, and contextualization of anatomy and radiology to create a blended learning environment.

Prioritising topics for the undergraduate ENT curriculum

“…Technological advances offer potential improvement in teaching methods but they need to be evaluated and used appropriately 34,35 . For example, online-learning has been found to be useful in teaching basic knowledge and simple technical skills, but not in understanding complex spatial anatomy 36 .…”

The Effectiveness of Early Clinical Exposure and E-Learning in Teaching Anatomy

“…Through interactive material in digital repository, immediate feedback and problem solving activities it can catalyse active participation [4,5]. Through computer enabled three-dimensional visualization, it can offset the limitations of verbal descriptions in teaching anatomy [6][7][8][9][10]. For the current tech-savvy generation, it can offer a platform to study through a media they enjoy.…”

“…Chopra et al found that performance after teaching with computer assisted visual aid was significantly better [8]. Webb and Choi found that the performance of students in summative assessment was better after radiological anatomy e-learning solutions [10]. In the study conducted by Hallgren, the mean scores in both midterm and final exams of the students who had used the web-based instructional materials (Group 1) were significantly higher (28.5 with p<0.001) than the mean scores of those students (Groups 2 & 3) who did not use the material (26 & 24 in midterm and 26 for both groups in final exams) [14].…”

Integrative Teaching in Radiology – A Survey

“…Only 43 % of universities offer e-learning and usually not as a required course. Radiology is particularly suitable for e-learning [24,25] since images can be analyzed and evaluated in a manner very similar to that of actual radiology. E-learning can be helpful not only in student education but also in radiology continuing education [11,26] and in other professions in the healthcare industry [27].…”