University College London, London, UK.
BMC Med Educ. 2021 Jun 10;21(1):341. doi: 10.1186/s12909-021-02778-6.
Feedback received from medical students at University College London Medical School (UCLMS) suggested a lack of clarity regarding the contents and subsequent assessment of the undergraduate curriculum. In order to address these issues, a specialist team was established with the aim of designing and implementing a Curriculum Map (CM), which have been recognised in their ability to provide a centralised, visual representation of the curriculum. While multiple perspectives from educators to stakeholders can be considered here, the need for the CM to remain student centred was identified as key at UCLMS. The aim of this study was therefore to understand the requirements of the CM prior to production from the perspective of the medical students.
A mixed-methods sequential study was conducted. The first stage involved gathering quantitative data using a primary online survey. This used 15 questions, rated by Likert scales and focussed around three domains: depiction of content, functionality and students' likely engagement with a CM. There was a free-text question for additional comments. The second stage consisted of multiple student focus groups representing different years of the programme, conducted by trained facilitators following a predetermined scheme. Reflective Thematic Analysis (RTA) was used to synthesise the qualitative data, which was read independently by two researchers. All students at UCLMS were invited to participate in the study.
There were 409 survey responses. 92% of students said they were 'likely' or 'very likely' to use a CM, with their key intended use being to monitor their learning progress and ensure preparedness for assessments. Five key themes emerged from the focus groups, namely that students wanted a CM to be: comprehensive; simple and intuitive; able to link content throughout the course; aligned with assessment; and useful to monitor students' progress.
Through this study, valuable insight was gained on students' ideal preferences for the CM. Understanding this was important in order to ensure that its co-design remained student-centred prior to its design and launch. This study also highlighted the need to set realistic expectations for students on the role of a CM in preparing them for assessments, and ultimately professional practice.
伦敦大学学院医学院（UCLMS）的医学生反馈表明，他们对本科课程的内容和后续评估缺乏清晰的认识。为了解决这些问题，成立了一个专业团队，旨在设计和实施课程图（CM），这些课程图已经被证明能够提供课程的集中、可视化表示。虽然这里可以考虑教育工作者到利益相关者的多种观点，但 UCLMS 认为 CM 仍然需要以学生为中心。因此，这项研究的目的是从医学生的角度了解在制作 CM 之前对其的要求。
采用混合方法顺序研究。第一阶段通过主要的在线调查收集定量数据。该调查使用了 15 个问题，采用李克特量表进行评分，重点关注三个领域：内容描述、功能和学生对 CM 的可能参与度。还有一个用于附加评论的自由文本问题。第二阶段由不同年级的多名学生焦点小组组成，由经过培训的主持人按照预定计划进行。使用反思性主题分析（RTA）对定性数据进行综合，由两名研究人员独立阅读。UCLMS 的所有学生都被邀请参与这项研究。
共有 409 份调查回复。92%的学生表示他们“很可能”或“非常可能”使用 CM，他们的主要用途是监测他们的学习进度并确保为评估做好准备。焦点小组中出现了五个关键主题，即学生希望 CM 是：全面的；简单直观的；能够链接整个课程的内容；与评估一致；以及用于监测学生进度的有用工具。
通过这项研究，我们获得了学生对 CM 的理想偏好的有价值的见解。了解这一点对于确保其共同设计在设计和推出之前仍然以学生为中心非常重要。这项研究还强调了需要为学生设定对 CM 在为评估和最终专业实践做准备方面的作用的现实期望。
