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. 2017 Sep 22:8:326-333.
doi: 10.5116/ijme.59b9.5f40.

Is lecture dead? A preliminary study of medical students' evaluation of teaching methods in the preclinical curriculum

Anne Zinski  1 , Kristina T C Panizzi Woodley Blackwell  1 , F Mike Belue  1 , William S Brooks  2
Affiliations

Is lecture dead? A preliminary study of medical students' evaluation of teaching methods in the preclinical curriculum

Anne Zinski et al. Int J Med Educ. .

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate medical students' perceptions of lecture and non-lecture-based instructional methods and compare preferences for use and quantity of each during preclinical training.

Methods: We administered a survey to first- and second-year undergraduate medical students at the University of Alabama School of Medicine in Birmingham, Alabama, USA aimed to evaluate preferred instructional methods. Using a cross-sectional study design, Likert scale ratings and student rankings were used to determine preferences among lecture, laboratory, team-based learning, simulation, small group case-based learning, large group case-based learning, patient presentation, and peer teaching. We calculated mean ratings for each instructional method and used chi-square tests to compare proportions of first- and second-year cohorts who ranked each in their top 5 preferred methods.

Results: Among participating students, lecture (M=3.6, SD=1.0), team based learning (M=4.2, SD=1.0), simulation (M=4.0, SD=1.0), small group case-based learning (M=3.8, SD=1.0), laboratory (M=3.6, SD=1.0), and patient presentation (M=3.8, SD=0.9) received higher scores than other instructional methods. Overall, second-year students ranked lecture lower (χ2(1, N=120) =16.33, p<0.0001) and patient presentation higher (χ2(1, N=120) =3.75, p=0.05) than first-year students.

Conclusions: While clinically-oriented teaching methods were preferred by second-year medical students, lecture-based instruction was popular among first-year students. Results warrant further investigation to determine the ideal balance of didactic methods in undergraduate medical education, specifically curricula that employ patient-oriented instruction during the second preclinical year.

Keywords: case-based learning; collaborative learning; instructional methods; laboratory; lecture; patient presentation; simulation; team-based learning; undergraduate medical education.

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