Implementation and evaluation of problem-based video podcasts in an introductory pharmacokinetics course

Student-led podcasts to enhance literature evaluation skills

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Critical evaluation and understanding of primary literature is essential to pharmacy practice. This project evaluated student confidence and learning outcomes in a critical care elective course where podcasts were used as an active learning assignment for literature evaluation.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING

Third-year pharmacy students created a 15- to 20-min podcast episode that reviewed a landmark critical care trial. A pre/post survey was used to assess student perceptions of confidence in evaluating primary literature. A standardized rubric was used to assess literature evaluation skills in several domains.

FINDINGS

Ninety-two third-year pharmacy students were enrolled in the critical care elective course, and 93% (86 of 92) completed the survey. Student perceptions of their ability to evaluate literature improved for all seven questions, including comfort in interpreting study methodology and applying findings of literature to patient care. Students scored proficient on most components of the standardized rubric, with ability to discuss results and conclusions being the lowest performing domain (78.2% fully proficient). After completing the activity, students felt more confident in interpreting results, applying findings, and orally presenting a journal article to peers. Most students felt the podcast activity helped them strengthen their literature evaluation skills and recommended this activity to a peer.

SUMMARY

Third-year pharmacy students reported an improvement in confidence in the interpretation and application of primary literature after creating a podcast episode reviewing a critical care trial. Additional research with creation of podcasts or other audio/visual methods should be studied in the future.

Podcasts and videos and slides…oh my!: Traditional vs. nontraditional teaching methods in remote settings

INTRODUCTION

Nontraditional teaching methods are student-centered and motivate students to participate in class activities. Some studies have shown benefit in using various teaching activities; however, data are limited regarding students' perspective and performance after implementation of nontraditional learning strategies. The study compared student preference and performance assessment with traditional and nontraditional presentation methods.

METHODS

This study included first-year pharmacy students enrolled in a course at a research-intensive, public university. Students in 2020 received traditional lectures while students in 2021 were presented three topics as nontraditional activities, including a podcast, an escape room, a video inspired by Khan Academy, and a traditional asynchronous lecture using slides with voice-over. First-year pharmacy students were surveyed in 2021 regarding their perspective on the nontraditional presentations. Students' performance was compared between 2020 and 2021.

RESULTS

Ninety-eight students in 2020 and 89 students in 2021 were enrolled in the course. Sixty-seven students completed the 2021 survey. Most students (71.6%) preferred the traditional lecture; the Khan Academy and escape room activities were the least favored. Most students (86.5%) responded they learned "quite a bit" or a "tremendous amount" with the traditional lecture, and 59.7% of students felt they would perform better on assessments with the traditional lecture compared to nontraditional. Students in 2021 only performed better on all exam questions related to the nontraditional podcast activity.

CONCLUSIONS

Students preferred traditional lectures and also seemed to perform better on assessment, with the exception of the nontraditional presentation podcast style. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Image Video Teaching Method in College Physical Education

At present, traditional methods of physical education in colleges and universities are no longer able to meet the requirements of modern physical education and need to be improved. The application of the visual teaching method to the teaching of physical education in college in the classroom can best see the modern theory of physical education, which is necessary for the theory of physical education in college. On this basis, it is recommended to use the teaching method with image in the teaching of physical education in college. This document is in the form of a search query in conjunction with other search methods to perform a search. This article takes Tai Chi in the university physical education curriculum as an example. It selects two classes with no difference in number of genders and conducts traditional teaching and VR image video teaching, respectively. And from the learning situation, interest and satisfaction of the two classes analyze the degree. In this study, we found that before the experiment, the number of students with 85 scores or above in the control class was 8, accounting for 20%, 14 students with 70-85 scores, accounting for 35%, and 18 students with 60-70 scores, accounting for 45%. As could be observed, the majority of students in the control class scored between 60 and 70 points overall, with a merit rate of only 55%. In the experimental class, there are 15 students with 85 points or above, accounting for 37.5%, 18 students with 70-85 points, accounting for 45%, and 7 students with 60-70 points, accounting for 17.5%. In the experimental class, the overall score of students is between 70 and 85 points, accounting for 82.5%. The image and video teaching method can be seen to be useful in improving students' athletic achievement. In addition, the image and image instruction approach can better enhance students' interest in learning, and most students are satisfied with the image and video instruction approach.

Relationships Between Remote Asynchronous Lectures and Summative Assessment Performance in four Pharmacotherapeutics Courses

Background: Synchronous education describes when teaching, learning, and assessment occur concurrently and asynchronous education describes when teaching, learning, and assessment occur anytime. Remote learning is where teaching and learning occur via technological means. Objective: This report describes a remote, asynchronous learning method implemented in a 3-year, block curriculum, Doctor of Pharmacy degree program. Methods: Remote asynchronous lectures embedded with quizzes were delivered to pharmacy students at the end of their first professional year and beginning of their second professional year. Camtasia software and Screencast.com were utilized during portions of 4 pharmacotherapeutic-based courses. Students completed time-spaced quizzes embedded every 5 to 15 minutes throughout the videos and quiz scores were recorded. Discrete watches, number of total watches, and average number of video quiz questions correctly answered were examined for Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (ρ) with end-of-course summative assessment scores. Results: There were no strong positive correlations between discrete watches, number of total watches, and average number of video quiz questions correctly answered and end-of-course assessment scores (ρ range: -0.47 to 0.25). There were weak to moderate correlations within the rheumatology and dermatology assessment scores based on the Screencast.com content questions and the number of unique video watches (ρ = 0.40), average number of total video watches (ρ = 0.28), and average percent of quiz questions correct (ρ = 0.40), all of which were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Remote asynchronous lectures including time-spaced quizzes were not associated with improvements in summative assessment performance. Mild positive correlations between remote asynchronous lectures and time-spaced quizzes may correspond with discrete questions on a summative assessment but those relationships may be influenced by the content within the remote asynchronous lectures.

Effectiveness of blended learning in pharmacy education: An experimental study using clinical research modules

BACKGROUND &OBJECTIVES

Though there are studies to evaluate the effectiveness of blended learning in pharmacy education, most of them originate from USA and have used previous year students' scores as control. Also there is less research in comparing use of self -regulated learning strategies between blended and other learning strategies. Primary aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of blended learning on knowledge score using clinical research modules. Secondary objective was designed to compare the use of self-regulated learning strategies between blended learning, web-based e-learning and didactic teaching.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A prospective cluster randomized trial was conducted with didactic teaching as control and web-based e-learning and blended learning as interventions. The target population was final year Pharm D students. Outcome was assessed using a validated knowledge questionnaire, a motivated strategies for learning questionnaire and a feedback form. All statistical analyses were carried out using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Version 20.

RESULTS

A total of 241 students from 12 colleges completed the study. Mean knowledge score of students in blended learning group was higher than those in the didactic teaching and web- based e- learning program (64.26±18.19 Vs 56.65±8.73 Vs 52.11±22.06,p<0.001).Frequency of use of learning strategies namely rehearsal, elaboration, organization and critical thinking was statistically significantly higher in the blended learning group compared to those of didactic and web-based e-learning group (p<0.05) But there were no statistically significant difference of motivational orientations between didactic and blended learning group except strategies of extrinsic goal orientation and self-efficacy. Students preferred blended learning (86.5%) over didactic and web-based e-learning.

CONCLUSION

Blended learning approach is an effective way to teach clinical research module. Students of blended learning group employed all motivational and learning strategies more often than students of the didactic and web- based e-learning groups except strategies of intrinsic goal orientation, task value, control of learning belief and help seeking.

Effectiveness of blended learning in pharmacy education: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background & objective

Though blended learning (BL), is widely adopted in higher education, evaluating effectiveness of BL is difficult because the components of BL can be extremely heterogeneous. Purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of BL in improving knowledge and skill in pharmacy education.

Methods

PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus and the Cochrane Library were searched to identify published literature. The retrieved studies from databases were screened for its title and abstracts followed by the full-text in accordance with the pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Methodological quality was appraised by modified Ottawa scale. Random effect model used for statistical modelling.

Key findings

A total of 26 studies were included for systematic review. Out of which 20 studies with 4525 participants for meta-analysis which employed traditional teaching in control group. Results showed a statistically significant positive effect size on knowledge (standardized mean difference [SMD]: 1.35, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.91 to 1.78, p<0.00001) and skill (SMD: 0.68; 95% CI: 0.19 to 1.16; p = 0.006) using a random effect model. Subgroup analysis of cohort studies showed, studies from developed countries had a larger effect size (SMD: 1.54, 95% CI: 1.01 to 2.06), than studies from developing countries(SMD: 0.44, 95% CI: 0.23 to 0.65, studies with MCQ pattern as outcome assessment had larger effect size (SMD: 2.81, 95% CI: 1.76 to 3.85) than non-MCQs (SMD 0.53, 95% CI 0.33 to 0.74), and BL with case studies (SMD 2.72, 95% CI 1.86–3.59) showed better effect size than non-case-based studies (SMD: 0.22, CI: 0.02 to 0.41).

Conclusion

BL is associated with better academic performance and achievement than didactic teaching in pharmacy education.