Description and Evaluation of an Interactive Jeopardy Game Designed to Foster Self-Assessment

Abstract

Basic clinical skill courses require students to progress from early information acquisition toward the ability to synthesize and modify the information for various clinical scenarios. In our program, graduate physical and occupational therapy students obtain practice with this clinical reasoning process during a classroom version of the Jeopardy! game. This interactive game show format offers a low-risk environment that encourages student participation. The students divide into two interdisciplinary teams, and each team elects four persons to formally answer the questions. These spokespersons take turns selecting a category of questions. Since all students are assigned to a team, even those not actively answering questions are still involved in the problem solving process. Category topics include areas such as physiologic changes, exercise prescription, abuse, discharge planning, community services, patient education, safety, and caregiver preparation. Each team selects a topic area and chooses a monetary value for the question. The instructor reads a clinical scenario and students work together to quickly provide an answer. The complexity of each scenario increases as the dollar value increases. If a student team answers incorrectly, incompletely, or exceeds thirty seconds to answer, the other team may answer the question. The team interaction creates opportunities to provide feedback to peers on the accuracy, appropriateness, and timeliness of their clinical recommendations. The level of friendly competition, combined with the rapid pace of the game, encourages students to learn from each other as they practice the clinical decision-making process.