Learning Assistants in Flipped-Classrooms: A New Pedagogical Strategy for Pre-Clinical Medical Education

Problem-based learning has been widely incorporated into pre-clinical medical education to increase the applicability of pre-clinical knowledge. However, studies have demonstrated increased learning burden and decreased confidence in learning when adapting to this didactic medium. To the authors’ kn...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medical science educator 2024-02, Vol.34 (1), p.161-169
Main Authors: Ojas, Deshpande, Mariam, Ghattas, Aaron, Jacobs
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Education
Medical Education
Original Research
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Summary:Problem-based learning has been widely incorporated into pre-clinical medical education to increase the applicability of pre-clinical knowledge. However, studies have demonstrated increased learning burden and decreased confidence in learning when adapting to this didactic medium. To the authors’ knowledge, limited interventions target these shortcomings in real time. Thus, we adapted and implemented a “Learning Assistants” (LA) program that can be deployed in pre-clinical didactic sessions. In this prospective pilot study, trained LAs were deployed in the classroom to assist students in their clinical case vignettes under instructor supervision. Learning assistants and students completed pre-session and post-session evaluation surveys to assess LA helpfulness, student confidence, and interest in study material. Paired observations were evaluated using Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests, ANCOVA, and paired t -tests. Unstructured responses were evaluated using thematic analysis. A significant improvement in both student interest ( p  
ISSN:2156-8650
2156-8650
DOI:10.1007/s40670-023-01958-x