Carson Elizabeth, Wilcox Rebecca
Department of Internal Medicine, The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, 89 Beaumont Ave., Burlington, VT 05405 USA.
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, 89 Beaumont Ave., Burlington, VT 05405 USA.
Med Sci Educ. 2019 Oct 28;30(1):139-146. doi: 10.1007/s40670-019-00821-2. eCollection 2020 Mar.
With the movement away from lectures and towards active learning sessions, medical school faculty must choose a format that fits the learning objectives and is achievable with available resources. Small groups bring organizational challenges including additional faculty and classrooms. Large groups are an opportunity to conduct case-based active learning exercises with fewer faculty. Our study compares the learning effectiveness of an active learning session on metabolic liver disease conducted in both the small group and large group formats.
All MS1 students at University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine (LCOM) ( = 120) were randomized to participate in either the small or large group session. The same pre-learning videos and computer-based active learning module were used for all students in both session types. A post-session questionnaire was administered, and student exam performance was analyzed to evaluate each session type on the following criteria: (1) student preparedness for the session, (2) student perceptions of the session's learning effectiveness, (3) learner knowledge upon completion of the session, and (4) knowledge retention at 10 days.
No statistically significant differences were found between the large and small group cohorts on student perceptions of learning effectiveness or knowledge assessment, both immediate and delayed. Students assigned to the large group did choose their collaborators differently than those in the small group, tending more often to work with their friends.
When organized well, a large group active learning format may be used in place of a small group without diminishing the learning effectiveness of the activity.
随着医学教育从传统讲座式教学向主动学习模式的转变，医学院教师必须选择一种符合学习目标且能在现有资源条件下实现的教学形式。小组教学会带来组织上的挑战，包括需要额外的教师和教室。大班教学则为用较少教师开展基于案例的主动学习活动提供了机会。我们的研究比较了以小组和大班两种形式开展的关于代谢性肝病的主动学习课程的学习效果。
佛蒙特大学拉纳医学院（LCOM）的所有一年级医学生（n = 120）被随机分配参加小组或大班课程。两种课程类型的所有学生都使用相同的预习视频和基于计算机的主动学习模块。课程结束后进行问卷调查，并分析学生的考试成绩，以根据以下标准评估每种课程类型：（1）学生对课程的准备情况，（2）学生对课程学习效果的看法，（3）课程结束时学习者的知识掌握情况，以及（4）10天后的知识保持情况。
在学生对学习效果的看法或即时及延迟的知识评估方面，大班和小组两组学生之间未发现统计学上的显著差异。被分配到大班的学生选择合作者的方式与小组学生不同，他们更倾向于与朋友合作。
如果组织得当，大班主动学习形式可以替代小组教学，而不会降低活动的学习效果。
