Abstract
This article was migrated. The article was not marked as recommended. Background: A thorough understanding of infectious diseases is needed by medical professionals; therefore effective microbiological teaching is critical. Although faculty lectures are a convenient means of educating large groups of students, they may fail to engage students and convey an understanding of the subject. Therefore, we developed peer teaching methods based on game-based learning. Methods: A group of student representatives were trained to lecture to a class of 300 third-year medical students via a game show format over a 3-year period (2013-2015). Results: The students reported a higher level of understanding (3.6-4.2 vs 3.6-3.9 out of 5; p < 0.001) and more satisfaction (3.9-4.3 vs 3.6-3.8 out of 5; p < 0.001). Peer teaching also significantly improved the teaching skills of the students (8.9-9.2 vs 8.4-8.7 out of 10; p < 0.001). However, equivalent knowledge outcomes were observed between the two methods and peer teaching demanded more out-of-class time for preparation (44 vs 16 hours for 2013, 49 vs 19 hours for 2014 and 2015). Conclusions: Peer teaching did improve the students' attitude towards learning and conferred teaching skills, but the learning activity needs adjustment to reduce the out-of-class preparation time.
Highlights
Understanding the complex interactions between the host and microbes is vital among medical professionals
In medical school, most teaching focuses on the host with comparatively little time allocated to microbiology teaching
Only 6.5 credits are allocated for microbiology, whereas 71.5 credits are allocated for host subjects in the preclinical part of our curriculum
Summary
Understanding the complex interactions between the host and microbes is vital among medical professionals. In medical school, most teaching focuses on the host with comparatively little time allocated to microbiology teaching. Effective microbiology education in the limited time available is critical. Large group teaching by faculty lectures typically results in limited attention levels and short-term memory of the subject area among the audience, leading to a lower level of understanding of the subject being taught, indicating that it is not an optimal method for skill teaching (Grauer et al 2008, Persky and Pollack 2010, Wood 2003). A thorough understanding of infectious diseases is needed by medical professionals; effective microbiological teaching is critical. Faculty lectures are a convenient means of educating large groups of students, they may fail to engage students and convey an understanding of the subject. We developed peer teaching methods based on game-based learning
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