Team-based learning-adopted strategy in pharmacy education: pharmacology and medicinal chemistry students’ perceptions

Abstract

Background Team-based learning (TBL) provides an advanced teaching method for healthcare education; it is characterised by being an interactive teaching session that allows groups of learners to work together in teams to discuss and apply what they have learnt to certain clinical scenarios. The following study aims to evaluate the impact of TBL strategy on the students' comprehension and acquired knowledge, to allow better application and integration of knowledge. The aim of the study was to improve pharmacy students' skills in achieving learning outcomes by adapting TBL pedagogy in the lectures. Students’ feedbacks were collected via post-lecture survey. Results The study was applied to pharmacy students covering two courses: Pharmacology III (Level 4) and Medicinal Chemistry I (Level 3) in a period of two-week lectures through the first semester of the academic year 2021/2022 in Future University in Egypt. The selected topics-related preparation materials were previously available on each course moodle page prior to the actual lecture, for the students to get prepared including growth hormone, sex hormones and their associated diseases for the pharmacology course and COVID-19 management for the Medicinal Chemistry course. The TBL lecture was started by dividing the students into teams and then readiness assurance tests were given, as individual readiness assurance test and then team readiness assurance test conceptual test were applied. The assessment of the students’ decision-making skills and problem solving was evaluated through solving-related clinical cases. All the learning outcomes were achieved with maximum participation and interaction via an open discussion between the lecturer and the students during the lecture. A total of 116 students answered the survey and confirmed their satisfaction, better understanding and more participation in TBL lectures compared to other topics taught with the ordinary methods. More than half of the students recommended the TBL method for better perception and participation. Conclusion The students felt great appreciation for the team-based lecturing. Also, recommendations and suggestions were directed towards increasing the percentage of TBL lectures in the curriculum, as it helped them to concentrate more with high participation levels.

Pharmacology education in the medical curriculum: Challenges and opportunities for improvement

“…Attia & Mandour 37 The impact of TBL in the learning of pharmacology in a pharmacy school was evaluated through problem-solving and post-course survey TBL enhanced students' satisfaction, content understanding and participation…”

Acceptance of team-based learning by students and faculty: A pilot study

“…5 TBL has been implemented as a preferred mode of learning in number of medical and health schools. 6,7 TBL process is carried out through following steps; I) Advance Assignment, guided self-preparation with pre-reading materials for initial self-directed acquisition of knowledge. II) an Individual Readiness Assurance Test (iRAT) to assess the basic understanding of data and concepts learnt through Step-I which will help to solve Team Application (tAPP) problems.…”

The Effectiveness of Team-Based Learning in the Teaching Rounds for Standardized Training of Anesthesiology Residents

“…TBL originated in business education, but it has now gained popularity in medical and health science education globally, including medicine, pharmacy, and nursing [4][5][6] . TBL can be utilized in a variety of permutations and combinations across a diversity of settings, learners, and content areas [7] .…”