How to Structure Small Groups for Better Performance in Medical Biochemistry

Abstract

Kolb's learning styles inventory was chosen to determine the best team settings for better small group performance in the Medical Biochemistry course.Students were randomly grouped in the first half of the course, and then regrouped based on their learning style in the second half.The majority of students belonged to the converging learning style followed by the assimilating style. The accommodating and diverging styles were rare.We compared grade changes in collaborative work; concept maps (CM) and group quizzes, as well as assignments not related to collaborative work; individual quizzes (IQ). Approximately, 41% of the students had better grades in all grade categories. Although similar number of students achieved better grades in CM and IQ, only 54% of the total number of students showed improvement in both, indicating no strong correlation between the two grades. In fact, most students (79%) improved their grades of the IQ.In teams formed by students of similar learning styles, the collaborative CM scores increased considerably; whereas their IQ scores did not seem to be affected significantly. The IQ scores of students belonging to diverse groups seemed to increase in the second part of the course. This finding might be due to the increased effort and/or familiarity with the assessment methods.