Flipped classroom instructional approach in undergraduate medical education

Abstract

Objective: In this study we implemented the "flipped classroom" model to enhance active learning in medical students taking neurosciences module at Aga Khan University, Karachi.

Methods: Ninety eight undergraduate medical students participated in this study. The study was conducted from January till March 2017. Study material was provided to students in form of video lecture and reading material for the non-face to face sitting, while face to face time was spent on activities such as case solving, group discussions, and quizzes to consolidate learning under the supervision of faculty. To ensure deeper learning, we used pre- and post-class quizzes, work sheets and blog posts for each session. Student feedback was recorded via a likert scale survey.

Results: Eighty four percent students gave positive responses towards utility of flipped classroom in terms of being highly interactive, thought provoking and activity lead learning. Seventy five percent of the class completed the pre-session preparation. Students reported that their queries and misconceptions were cleared in a much better way in the face-to-face session as compared to the traditional setting (4.09 ±1.04).

Conclusion: Flipped classroom(FCR) teaching and learning pedagogy is an effective way of enhancing student engagement and active learning. Thus, this pedagogy can be used as an effective tool in medical schools.

Keywords: E-Learning; Flipped classroom; Medical Education; Medical students.

Fig.1

(A–D): Response to survey questions broadly classified into four domains. A) The replies of student regarding pre-session preparation are presented as percentages. Their responses regarding their studying strategy and clarity of instruction were noted. B) The overall feelings of students during the class session are presented. C) The feelings of the students regarding the FCR upon completion are presented. The students were very happy with the FCR sessions overall. D) Students’ opinion regarding the utility of FCR for future session is presented. Students were impressed with this mode of teaching and believed that it could be applied to more than particular topics only.