Peer Evaluation Research Articles

Recycling of PFSA-Based Membranes and Their Re-Application in PEM Fuel Cells

The commercialization of PEM fuel cells offers a promising opportunity to overcome our dependence on fossil fuels and provides an attractive alternative for automotive and stationary power applications.[1] However, PEMFCs are still costly in production, with the main cost factor due to the fabrication of the perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA)-based proton exchange membrane and the noble metal catalysts.[2,3] Recycling of these components could increase the economic attractiveness of PEMFCs. However, while the high resistance of the ionomer membrane to thermal and chemical degradation is favorable for their use in fuel cells, it also makes membrane recycling a major challenge.Here, we present a newly developed recycling strategy to recover PFSA-based membranes after operation by a hydrothermal treatment. Both short side chain (SSC) and long side chain (LSC) ionomers with EWs of 800 and 1000 were investigated. In contrast to previously published methods, we were able to recover the PFSA ionomer by using water instead of high-boiling organic solvents, such as DMF or DMSO.[4,5] The recycled membranes were obtained from the recycled PFSA ionomer solution by doctor-blading. They were investigated by in-situ Raman techniques for studying the water uptake and analyzed by IR and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) techniques to get a more detailed insight into their morphology. In single cell tests at standard (80 °C) and enhanced (up to 130 °C) PEMFC operating temperatures, the recycled membranes showed an increased cell performance as compared to the pristine 3M-800EW membrane. Solid-state NMR measurements confirmed that no chemical changes in the membrane occurred due to the heat-treatment process.We assume that the observed performance boost can be attributed to an increased water uptake and retention. Furthermore, a change in the polymer matrix formation may be responsible for the observed behavior, which led to an expanded water filled channel structure, where water can accumulate to facilitate proton diffusion as H3O+ through the channels. To confirm this assumption, the morphology of the recycled membranes will be investigated by in situ SAXS measurements at different temperatures and degrees of hydration.[1] I. Staffell, D. Scamman, A. Velazquez Abad, P. Balcombe, P. E. Dodds, P. Ekins, N. Shah, K. R. Ward, Energy Environ. Sci. 2019, 12, 463–491.[2] J. Fan, M. Chen, Z. Zhao, Z. Zhang, S. Ye, S. Xu, H. Wang, H. Li, Nat. Energy 2021, 6, 475–486.[3] D. Papageorgopoulos, Fuel Cell R&D Overview. 2019 Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting, 2019.[4] Q. Xu, X. Chen, S. Wang, C. Guo, Y. Niu, R. Zuo, Z. Yang, Y. Zhou, C. Xu, Energies 2022, 15, 8717.[5] H. F. Xu, X. Wang, Z. G. Shao, I. M. Hsing, J. Appl. Electrochem. 2002, 32, 1337–1340.

Optimizing learning return on investment: Identifying learning strategies based on user behavior characteristic in language learning applications

Began with Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) in the 1960s and extended to the widespread use of various Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) tools in education, language learning has embraced technology early on, achieved noticeable results, and found extensive practical use. However, due to the challenges in accessing user data from various language learning platforms, the measurement and assessment of language-related variables continue to rely on self-reporting and peer evaluations. This reliance hampers researchers to observe language learning from alternative perspectives, especially when it comes to analyzing raw behavioral data. To explore potential correlations between different learning modes, this study analyzed 2 million samples from Chinese students using an English language learning application. The study quantified the effectiveness of English vocabulary learning using the economic concept of return on investment (ROI) as an evaluation metric and identified four distinct learning strategies. It observed significant differences in learning ROI among learners who adopted different strategies. Based on this analysis, we recommend the following suggestions for improving language learning ROI: when memorizing new vocabulary, investing excessive amounts of time may be counterproductive; a more effective approach is to "eat less but more often," which means arranging review sessions at a reasonable pace and shortening the interval between each review.

Exploring Effective Physics Teaching Strategies in High Schools during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The need for educational approaches that comply with the restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic has raised a number of critical issues for students of different age groups. The delicate transition between high school and university has become a key point to focus on, leading many institutions to replan projects dedicated to students involved in this transition. A Physics vocational training project for high school students was carried out in the school year 2020–2021, and it was replicated in the school year 2021–2022. The project included webinars, self-assembled laboratory group experiences, and peer evaluation. The starting point on which we designed our project is that learning is an experience; thus, we built the entire project by particularly focusing on two peculiarities. One peculiarity is the assessment methods: student presentations describing their own experiences were evaluated by teachers and their peers. The second peculiarity is the open approach with respect to how students handle experimental activities. We present a description of these projects along with the results of an evaluation survey filled out by the participants and a descriptive analysis of the assessment strategies. Students appreciated the design of the entire project and, better still, the peer evaluation process. Moreover, we discovered that the evaluation provided by the teachers is lower compared to the assessment reported by the students. This disparity holds potential significance from a statistical perspective and warrants further investigation.

What predicts variation in reliability and validity of online peer assessment? A large‐scale cross‐context study

AbstractBackgroundFor peer assessment, reliability (i.e., consistency in ratings across peers) and validity (i.e., consistency of peer ratings with instructors or experts) are frequently examined in the research literature to address a central concern of instructors and students. Although the average levels are generally promising, both reliability and validity can vary substantially from context to context. Meta‐analyses have identified a few moderators that are related to peer assessment reliability/validity, but they have lacked statistical power to systematically investigate many moderators or disentangle correlated moderators.ObjectivesThe current study fills this gap by addressing what variables influence peer assessment reliability/validity using a large‐scale, cross‐context dataset from a shared online peer assessment platform.MethodsUsing multi‐level structural equation models, we examined three categories of variables: (1) variables related to the context of peer assessment; (2) variables related to the peer assessment task itself; and (3) variables related to rating rubrics of peer assessment.Results and ConclusionsWe found that the extent to which assessment documents varied in quality on the given rubric played a central role in mediating the effect from different predictors to peer assessment reliability/validity. Other variables that are significantly associated with reliability and validity included: Education Level, Language, Discipline, Average Ability of Peer Raters, Draft Number, Assignment Number, Class Size, Average Number of Raters, and Length of Rubric Description. The results provide information to guide practitioners on how to improve reliability and validity of peer assessments.

How well can an AI chatbot infer personality? Examining psychometric properties of machine-inferred personality scores.

The present study explores the plausibility of measuring personality indirectly through an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot. This chatbot mines various textual features from users' free text responses collected during an online conversation/interview and then uses machine learning algorithms to infer personality scores. We comprehensively examine the psychometric properties of the machine-inferred personality scores, including reliability (internal consistency, split-half, and test-retest), factorial validity, convergent and discriminant validity, and criterion-related validity. Participants were undergraduate students (n = 1,444) enrolled in a large southeastern public university in the United States who completed a self-report Big Five personality measure (IPIP-300) and engaged with an AI chatbot for approximately 20-30 min. In a subsample (n = 407), we obtained participants' cumulative grade point averages from the University Registrar and had their peers rate their college adjustment. In an additional sample (n = 61), we obtained test-retest data. Results indicated that machine-inferred personality scores (a) had overall acceptable reliability at both the domain and facet levels, (b) yielded a comparable factor structure to self-reported questionnaire-derived personality scores, (c) displayed good convergent validity but relatively poor discriminant validity (averaged convergent correlations = .48 vs. averaged machine-score correlations = .35 in the test sample), (d) showed low criterion-related validity, and (e) exhibited incremental validity over self-reported questionnaire-derived personality scores in some analyses. In addition, there was strong evidence for cross-sample generalizability of psychometric properties of machine scores. Theoretical implications, future research directions, and practical considerations are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

훈련된 동료 평가자를 활용한 과학 구술평가에 대한 중학생의 인식

Objectives The purpose of this study is to find out middle school students' awareness of the assessment of oral presentations by ‘trained peer evaluators’ in science classes. Methods 19 trained peer evaluators conducted the assessment of oral presentations on 90 peer learners. Then, we investigated the awareness of ‘usefulness’, ‘reliability’, and ‘the training peer evaluators’ competency-building training process' for this evaluation. Results The results showed that the evaluated learners were found to have a positive awareness on usefulness (M=3.88) and reliability (M=4.09) of ‘the assessment of science oral presentations by the trained peer evaluators’. But there was no significant difference according to gender. The awareness on usefulness of the trained peer evaluators (M=4.38) was more positive than that of the evaluated learners (M=3.88), and there was no significant difference in reliability according to the role. The trained peer evaluators had positive awareness of ‘the competency-building process’ (M=4.47) and responded that the process of exchanging questions helped learning. Conclusions Both the trained peer evaluators and the evaluated learners were positively aware of ‘the assessment of science oral presentations by the trained peer evaluators’ and there was no difference according to gender. Overall, the awareness of the trained peer evaluators was more positive than that of the evaluated learners, and ‘the competency-building process’ was found to be helpful to trained peer evaluators for their learning.

Photovoice in EFL Essay Writing: Student

Although research regarding writing for English as a foreign language has been much discussed and reported, little empirical evidence addresses photovoice, which documents the student teachers’ learning experience on essay writing in the Asian context. To fill this void, this article reports on a case study investigating the student teachers' learning experience on essay writing using photovoice. The research findings indicate that integrating photovoice in EFL writing instruction positively influenced student teachers' self-awareness, motivation, and reflective learning habits. Student teachers reported increased engagement in the writing process, improved self-evaluation and peer evaluation skills, and a greater sense of agency in addressing writing challenges, ultimately leading to enhanced writing proficiency and confidence. This study reveals the positive impact of photovoice in EFL writing instruction for Asian student teachers, enhancing self-awareness, motivation, and reflective learning habits and improving writing proficiency and confidence.

Combining GitHub, Chat, and Peer Evaluation Data to Assess Individual Contributions to Team Software Development Projects

Assessing team software development projects is notoriously difficult and typically based on subjective metrics. To help make assessments more rigorous, we conducted an empirical study to explore relationships between subjective metrics based on peer and instructor assessments, and objective metrics based on GitHub and chat data. We studied 23 undergraduate software teams ( n = 117 students) from two undergraduate computing courses at two North American research universities. We collected data on teams’ (a) commits and issues from their GitHub code repositories, (b) chat messages from their Slack and Microsoft Teams channels, (c) peer evaluation ratings from the CATME peer evaluation system, and (d) individual assignment grades from the courses. We derived metrics from (a) and (b) to measure both individual team members’ contributions to the team, and the equality of team members’ contributions. We then performed Pearson analyses to identify correlations among the metrics, peer evaluation ratings, and individual grades. We found significant positive correlations between team members’ GitHub contributions, chat contributions, and peer evaluation ratings. In addition, the equality of teams’ GitHub contributions was positively correlated with teams’ average peer evaluation ratings and negatively correlated with the variance in those ratings. However, no such positive correlations were detected between the equality of teams’ chat contributions and their peer evaluation ratings. Our study extends previous research results by providing evidence that (a) team members’ chat contributions, like their GitHub contributions, are positively correlated with their peer evaluation ratings; (b) team members’ chat contributions are positively correlated with their GitHub contributions; and (c) the equality of team’ GitHub contributions is positively correlated with their peer evaluation ratings. These results lend further support to the idea that combining objective and subjective metrics can make the assessment of team software projects more comprehensive and rigorous.

The Teaching–Learning of Community Social Work: Debating as an Instrument to Acquire Transversal Competences

Debating represents an active teaching–learning method in higher education. Engaging in debates helps to acquire and develop transversal skills, which are essential to successfully function in personal, academic, and professional spheres. In this quantitative, descriptive, and explanatory study, we analyse how attitudes included within transversal competences were acquired through a debate activity conducted as a part of the social work programme at the University of Alicante. A total of 74 students participated, with an average age of 22.34 years, the majority of which were women. The students were divided into two evaluation groups: a peer evaluation group and a teacher evaluation group. Using an ad hoc questionnaire, three categories of variables were studied: sociodemographic variables; organisational and activity evaluation variables; and variables relating to the acquisition of attitudes. The results indicated that debating favoured communication, innovation and entrepreneurship, social commitment, critical thinking, information management, autonomy and self-regulation, as well as teamwork. Variations were also found according to the university admission modality and the evaluation agent. These results highlight not only how useful debating can be as a pedagogical tool, but also the need to consider different contextual factors when implementing debate activities in the context of university studies.

An Examination of the Impact of International Student Status on Global Virtual Teams

ABSTRACT Scant research exists on international student status and global virtual teams (GVTs). Yet, study abroad post-COVID-19 Pandemic is rebounding and GVTs are frequently used in classrooms and workplaces. This article fills this literary gap through developing and testing models examining student status, performance, creativity, and leadership, while investigating the impact of English language ability in order to inform the international business education (IBE) field. Specifically, the focus here is to understand how international student status affects a student’s individual performance on GVTs. Hypotheses were generated that English language ability would moderate the relationship between international student status and creativity, as well as international student status and leadership. Results showed support, although weak, for these hypotheses. However, the most significant finding was the direct impact of English language ability on the dependent variables. Furthermore, an important contribution here is evidence that international students provide creativity and leadership on teams as long as their language ability is perceived to be good. Instructors may use these findings to design mechanisms to aid cross-cultural teams to work more effectively by providing a better understand how English language ability may influence the team and control for this ability when including peer evaluations scores in grades.

구성주의 전략을 활용한 리터러시 교육 연구

The purpose of this paper is to discuss effective literacy education methods through assertive writing and persuasive speech performance using constructivist strategies. To this end, speech learning after writing was designed based on the understanding of constructivism. The learning components are pre-teaching activities, learning guidance, learner-led learning, and assessment. According to the course, learning objectives, learner analysis, learning content mini-lecture, feedback, writing, presentation, teacher evaluation, and peer evaluation were planned. The learners performed solution-type argumentative writings, cold-bang-type argumentative writings, argument-type argumentative writings, goal-oriented argumentative writings, and persuasive speeches. Through this process and results, constructivist learning methods could be suggested to literacy education.

Students’ attitude towards different modalities of teaching in the medical curriculum of the faculty of physiology, SKIMS Medical College, Bemina

Background: The way that students learn and the caliber of their learning results are both influenced by their judgments about their learning modes. The clinical portion of undergraduate medical courses is conducted in a setting intended more for clinical service than for instruction. When these two activities fight for resources, tension results. A projected rise in the number of medical students prompted us to evaluate the learning environment in order to make future plans. Objective was to evaluate students’ attitude towards different modalities of teaching in the medical curriculum of the faculty of physiology, SKIMS medical college, Bemina. Methods: 200 SKIMS medical college students between the ages of 19 and 25 participated in a questionnaire-based study starting in October 2022. The phrasing of the question is repeated below. Each teaching method- lectures, handouts, textbooks, media sites (video-recorded lectures), simulation, PBL (problem-based learning), TBL (team-based learning), and ICM (introduction to clinical medicine, physical examination) practicals- was the subject of five questions. Answers were on a 5-step Likert scale. Results: It was a descriptive type of research in nature. The data has been collected with the help of a structured questionnaire based on the Likert scale. Conclusions: The study’s overall conclusions demonstrated that there had been significant changes in attitudes regarding professional development, team experiences, and peer evaluation.

Selecting a winner with external referees

We consider a problem of mechanism design without money, where a planner selects a winner among a set of agents with binary types and receives outside signals (like the report of external referees). We show that there is a gap between the optimal Dominant Strategy Incentive Compatible (DSIC) mechanism and the optimal Bayesian Incentive Compatible (BIC) mechanism. In the optimal BIC mechanism, the planner can leverage the outside signal to elicit information about agents' types. BIC mechanisms are lexicographic mechanisms, where the planner first shortlists agents who receive high reports from the referees and then uses agents' reports to break ties among agents in the shortlist. We compare the “self-evaluation” mechanism with a “peer evaluation” mechanism where agents evaluate other agents, and show that for the same signal precision, the self- evaluation mechanism outperforms the peer evaluation mechanism. We show that optimal Ex Post Incentive Compatible (EPIC) mechanisms give the planner an intermediate value between the optimal DSIC and BIC mechanisms

The degree of employment of peer assessment and self-assessment to develop the written expression skill of school students in Jordan, according to the viewpoint of Arabic language teachers

Objectives: The study aimed to demonstrate the extent to which Arabic language teachers employ peer evaluation and self-evaluation to develop the skill of written expression among students in Jordanian schools and to highlight the main challenges they face in achieving this goal. Methods: The study used the descriptive method, employing a questionnaire designed with 34 items divided into five-point scales across five areas: peer evaluation of expression, self-evaluation of expression, training in peer evaluation and self-assessment criteria, challenges related to regionalism, and challenges associated with students, society, and parents. The study sample consisted of 97 teachers from public schools in the Directorate of Education of the Marka Brigade during the second semester of 2020/2021. Results: The study's results indicated that Arabic language teachers greatly employed peer evaluation and self-evaluation to develop the skill of written expression. There were no statistically significant differences observed in relation to variables such as experience and scientific qualification. Regarding the challenges, most of the paragraphs received significant ratings of difficulty. Conclusions: The study recommends establishing criteria and foundations for peer assessment evaluation and self-assessment, conducting practical training courses on their implementation, and encouraging teachers to adopt modern evaluation strategies that enhance the development of written expression skills.

Evidence supporting performance measures of laparoscopic appendectomy through a novel surgical proficiency assessment tool and low-cost laparoscopic training system.

Laparoscopic training remains inaccessible for surgeons in low- and middle-income countries, limiting its widespread adoption. We developed a novel tool for assessment of laparoscopic appendectomy skills through ALL-SAFE, a low-cost laparoscopy training system. This pilot study in Ethiopia, Cameroon, and the USA assessed appendectomy skills using the ALL-SAFE training system. Performance measures were captured using the ALL-SAFE verification of proficiency tool (APPY-VOP), consisting of a checklist, modified Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (m-OSATS), and final rating. Twenty participants, including novice (n = 11), intermediate (n = 8), and expert (n = 1), completed an online module covering appendicitis management and psychomotor skills in laparoscopic appendectomy. After viewing an expert skills demonstration video, participants recorded their performance within ALL-SAFE. Using the APPY-VOP, participants rated their own and three peer videos. We used the Kruskal-Wallis test and a Many-Facet Rasch Model to evaluate (i) capacity of APPY-VOP to differentiate performance levels, (ii) correlation among three APPY-VOP components, and (iii) rating differences across groups. Checklist scores increased from novice (M = 21.02) to intermediate (M = 23.64) and expert (M = 28.25), with differentiation between experts and novices, P = 0.005. All five m-OSATS domains and global summed, total summed, and final rating discriminated across all performance levels (P < 0.001). APPY-VOP final ratings adequately discriminated Competent (M = 2.0), Borderline (N = 1.8), and Not Competent (M = 1.4) performances, Χ2 (2,85) = 32.3, P = 0.001. There was a positive correlation between ALL-SAFE checklist and m-OSATS summed scores, r(83) = 0.63, P < 0.001. Comparison of ratings suggested no differences across expertise levels (P = 0.69) or location (P = 0.66). APPY-VOP effectively discriminated between novice and expert performance in laparoscopic appendectomy skills in a simulated setting. Scoring alignment across raters suggests consistent evaluation, independent of expertise. These results support the use of APPY-VOP among all skill levels inside a peer rating system. Future studies will focus on correlating proficiency to clinical practice and scaling ALL-SAFE to other settings.

Investigating Effects of Teacher’s Using Authentic Texts on Cognitive Reading Engagement of Vietnamese EFL Students

The study examines the effects of teacher’s using authentic texts on EFL students’ cognitive reading engagement related to four variables including (i) reading comprehension, (ii) oral response to reading, (iii) reaction paragraph, and (iv) students’ perceptions of learning to read. Participants included 52 Vietnamese undergraduate students of EFL pre-intermediate level. The data of the study were collected through reading tests for the first three variables and a 32- item questionnaire for the fourth variable. Results revealed that students in the experimental condition achieved significantly better understanding of reading comprehension after the intervention course. In terms of reflection after reading and creating a reaction paragraph, the holistic quality of oral response and the reaction paragraph was significantly improved for both groups from a peer rating. However, students in the experimental group showed a more dramatic increase. Moreover, the findings of the questionnaire showed that students in the intervention course achieved a more positive perception of their learning to read.

Assessment of Effective Teaching Using by TOPSIS method

Effective teaching is a fundamental component of quality education. Educational institutions and stakeholders are constantly seeking ways to assess and enhance teaching practices to ensure optimal learning outcomes for students. This paper provides an overview of the various approaches and methods used for assessing effective teaching. It delves into the significance of aligning assessment strategies with specific learning goals and discusses the importance of considering both quantitative and qualitative measures. The paper highlights the role of student feedback in evaluating teaching effectiveness. It explores the use of surveys and evaluations to gather insights into instructional methods, classroom management, and the overall learning experience. Additionally, the incorporation of peer evaluations and self-assessment by instructors is examined as valuable tools for comprehensive teaching assessment. Furthermore, the paper addresses the growing influence of technology in teaching assessment. The utilization of learning analytics and data-driven insights offers a new dimension to evaluating teaching effectiveness. This includes the analysis of student performance data, engagement metrics, and online interaction patterns. It involves evaluating and understanding the various factors that contribute to effective teaching and its impact on student learning outcomes. Student Learning Outcomes: Effective teaching directly influences student learning outcomes. Research in this area helps identify teaching practices that lead to improved academic achievement, critical thinking skills, problem-solving abilities, and overall educational success. Educational Quality: High-quality teaching is a cornerstone of a strong education system. Understanding what makes teaching effective enables educational institutions to provide a better learning experience, attract and retain skilled educators, and enhance their reputation for producing successful graduates. TOPSIS, This method involves evaluating the geometric distance between each alternative solution and two reference solutions: the positive ideal solution and the negative ideal solution. The underlying principle of TOPSIS assumes that the criteria being assessed are of an ascending nature, where larger values represent better performance. To account for disparate dimensions or scales among the criteria, normalization is often employed within the TOPSIS framework. Alternative taken as Student Evaluations, Peer Reviews, Self-Assessment, Classroom Observations Evaluation preference taken as Enhanced Learning Outcomes, Continuous Improvement, Subjective Bias, Time-Consuming. From the result Student performance data is got the first rank and classroom observation is having the lowest rank.

Comparison of International Maritime Organization (IMO) Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS) with ISO/IEC 17000 conformity assessment standards series and ISO 19011

This study compares the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS) and ISO/IEC 17000 series as well as ISO 19011. The part that we investigate in this paper is the marine industry audit cycle that the IMO Member State Audit Scheme uses, such as ISM code certification of the vessels over 500 Gross Tonnage (GT) and the IAF peer evaluation of its members’ accreditation bodies. The reasoning for such effort is that both ISM code certification of the vessels over 500 GT and the IAF peer evaluation are long established and more mature assessment practices. The contribution of our study is to create a robust audit cycle for the IMO Member State Audit Scheme, which has not been examined in the literature.

Using the design-thinking method to develop and validate a peer evaluation scale for team-based learning (PES-TBL) for nursing students

BackgroundPeer evaluation in team-based learning provides meaningful information about the learning process and dynamics. Despite the importance of peer evaluation in learner-centred learning, there is a lack of valid and reliable scales that reflect students' experiences in the classroom. ObjectivesTo develop and validate a peer evaluation scale for team-based learning. DesignA cross-sectional methodological study. SettingFour universities located in Gwangju, Republic of Korea. ParticipantsEight nursing students exposed to team-based learning voluntarily participated in a design-thinking project, and eight nursing professors were selected for content validity. For the validation of the Scale, 722 nursing students were randomly selected. MethodsThe design-thinking method was implemented to develop the Scale, and a questionnaire was used to assess the Scale's construct validity and reliability. The construct validity was examined in a split-half analysis with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Cronbach's alpha, McDonald's omega, and composite reliability were investigated for the peer evaluation scale for team-based learning. ResultsA 12-item tool, with each item using a 5-point scale for peer evaluation, was developed through the empathise, define, ideate, prototype, and test stages of the design-thinking method. Exploratory factor analysis identified three factors from the 12 items: responsibility, initiative, and collaboration. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that the tool had acceptable convergent and discriminant validity, thus confirming good construct validity. All values for reliability were >0.70. ConclusionsThis study was noteworthy in that it employed the design-thinking method to reflect learners' opinions in developing a peer evaluation instrument. Moreover, the study demonstrated adequate evidence of reliability and validity. Consequently, the developed Scale can be effectively applied to team-based learning assessments for nursing students.

Application of a peer learning and assessment model in an undergraduate pharmacy course

BackgroundTimely and accurate feedback is a crucial component for effective undergraduate learning. However, with the expansion of university enrolment in China, student numbers have increased rapidly and, in traditional university classrooms, it is often difficult for the teacher – as the only evaluator – to accommodate students’ diverse needs and learning styles, and provide timely learning feedback. In our teaching practice research, we combined mutual peer evaluation with cooperative learning, and proposed a peer learning and assessment model (PLAM) that encouraged students to cooperate and compete, leading to greater efficiency in giving feedback. The ultimate goal was to improve students’ learning ability. This study aimed to investigate the effect and influencing factors of PLAM in an undergraduate course entitled ‘Medicinal Chemistry of Natural Products’.MethodsWe surveyed the entire pharmacy student body (95 students). Each student was required to provide feedback to the other members within the same study group and students in other groups. We evaluated the effectiveness of PLAM in five aspects: basic information, learning attitude, participation, interpersonal relationship, and organizational approach. The questionnaire was administered online using the Star survey platform. Data were exported to Excel and meta-analysis was performed using SPSS.ResultsPLAM effectively increased feedback efficiency, enhancing students’ learning interest and ability. An ordered logistic regression analysis model was used to analyze the factors influencing the PLAM learning effect. Three factors – learning attitude, participation, and interpersonal relationship – explained up to 71.3% of the model.ConclusionsThe PLAM adopted in this research is an effective learning and evaluation model that can promote collaborative learning and increase learning enthusiasm. It is more suitable for knowledge expansion learning and comprehensive practical learning where teachers cannot be present for the entire process. Students should be encouraged to establish appropriate learning attitudes and a positive group atmosphere. PLAM can positively impact college curriculum learning and could be extended to other teaching domains.