METHODS: Third-year undergraduate dental students were taught wire-bending skills via FC teaching method using a series of pre-recorded online video demonstrations. As part of the formative assessment, the students were given the results and assessment rubrics of their prior wire-bending assessment before every subsequent session. Purposive sampling method for focus group discussion was used to recruit eight students comprising four high achievers and four low achievers. Strengths, weaknesses and suggestions for improvement of the FC with formative assessment were explored. Data were transcribed and thematically analysed.
RESULTS: Students perceived that FC allowed for a more convenient and flexible learning experience with personalised learning and improved in-class teaching efficiency. The pre-recorded online videos were useful to aid in teaching wire-bending skills but lacked three-dimensional representation of the wire-bending process. Students suggested better standardisation of instructions and access to the marking rubric before and after assessment.
CONCLUSIONS: FC teaching with continuous formative assessment and constructive feedback as a form of personalised learning was viewed favourably by students. The implementation of periodic individual feedback can further enhance their learning experience.
METHODS: Forty third-year undergraduate dental students were randomly assigned to two groups: FC (n = 20) and LD (n = 20). Students in group FC attended FC, while students in group LD attended LD. Both groups underwent a series of standardized teaching sessions to acquire skills in fabricating six types of orthodontic wire components. Eight students (four high achievers and four low achievers) from each group were randomly selected to attend separate focus group discussion (FGD) sessions. Students' perceptions on the strengths, weaknesses, and suggestions for improvement on each teaching method were explored. Audio and video recordings of FGD were transcribed and thematically analyzed using NVivo version 12 software.
RESULTS: Promoting personalized learning, improvement in teaching efficacy, inaccuracy of three-dimensional demonstration from online video, and lack of standardization among instructors and video demonstration were among the themes identified. Similarly, lack of standardization among instructors was one of the themes identified for LD, in addition to other themes such as enabling immediate clarification and vantage point affected by seating arrangement and class size.
CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, FC outperformed LD in fostering personalized learning and improving the efficacy of physical class time. LD was more advantageous than FC in allowing immediate question and answer. However, seating arrangement and class size affected LD in contrast to FC.
Methods: PBL was implemented within two drug delivery courses in 2015, in anticipation that the use of formulation or industrial instead of clinical or pharmacy practice based triggers, would open up student interest and understanding towards learning pharmaceutics in relation to industrial pharmacy. Two cohorts were monitored through final year examination results and PBL feedback to evaluate student perception and acceptance of the use of PBL. Previous cohorts were only exposed to conventional tutorials.
Results: Both cohorts showed better performance in their final examination results (2015 & 2016) compared to the previous year (2014) when students were only exposed to tutorials. The maximum and average marks obtained were also higher. There was significant difference between the maximum marks for Drug Delivery Systems 2 and the average marks for Drug Delivery Systems 1 with P
METHODS: In this quasi-experimental, posttest-only nonequivalent control group design, the subjects were undergraduate students who had enrolled in Pediatric Nursing II at Islamic Azad University in Iran. The experiment was conducted over a period of eight weeks, one two-hour session and two two-hour sessions. Two experimental groups, Pure Problem-Based Learning (PPBL) and the Hybrid Problem- Based Learning (HPBL), and one Lecturing or Conventional Teaching and Learning (COTL) group were involved. In the PPBL group, PBL method with guided questions and a tutor, and in the HPBL group, problem-based learning method, some guided questions, minimal lecturing and a tutor were used. The COTL group, however, underwent learning using conventional instruction utilizing full lecture. The three groups were compared on cognitive performances, namely, test performance, mental effort, and instructional efficiency. Two instruments, i.e., Pediatric Nursing Performance Test (PNPT) and Paas Mental Effort Rating Scale (PMER) were used. In addition, the two-Dimensional Instructional Efficiency Index (IEI) formula was utilized. The statistical analyses used were ANOVA, ANCOVA, and mixed between-within subjects ANOVA.
RESULTS: Results showed that the PPBL and HPBL instructional methods, in comparison with COTL, enhanced the students' overall and higher-order performances in Pediatric Nursing, and induced higher level of instructional efficiency with less mental effort (p