ABSTRACT
Background: This complete-enumeration, before-and-after type of study (without controls) was conducted on 61 third-year medical students at Rajiv Gandhi Medical College, Thane, Maharashtra state to study the difference in cognitive domain scores after attending lecture-based learning (by a pre-test) and after attending case-based learning (by a post-test).Methods: After approval from the institutional ethics committee, the purpose of the study was explained to third-year medical students and written informed consent was obtained. After curriculum-based lectures on integrated management of neonatal and childhood Illness, a pre-test was administered wherein each student was asked to fill up case sheets for five case scenarios. The maximum marks obtainable were 10 marks per case (total 50 marks).' Case-based learning was conducted in two sub-groups comprising 31 and 30 randomly assigned students by the same faculty and students in each sub-group were exposed to identical case scenarios. The post-test was conducted using case scenarios and case sheets that were identical to that of the pre-test.Results: The overall mean score increased and the difference between the case-wise pre-test and post-test scores of both female (n=35) and male (n=26) students was highly significant (p <0.00001). However, the gender differences in pre-test score (Z=1.038; p=0.299) and post-test score were not significant (Z=0.114; p=0.909).Conclusions: Using case scenarios augmented the cognitive domain scores of participating students and the gender differences in scores were not statistically significant. The post-test scores showed higher variability. Remedial educational interventions would be required for students who obtained low scores in the post-test.
ABSTRACT
Background: This comparative, before and after study (without controls) was conducted in a municipal medical college to compare the cognitive domain scores obtained by first-year MBBS students after didactic lectures with that obtained after an educational intervention that combined integrated teaching with clinical scenarios.Methods: After obtaining prior permissions, the purpose of the study was explained to first-year MBBS students and written informed consent was obtained. After attending curriculum-based didactic lectures on the alimentary system, the students (n=62, females: n=29, 46.77% and males: n=33, 53.23%) took a pre-test comprising ten questions (total 20 marks). After the pre-test, the participants attended an educational intervention that combined integrated teaching with clinical scenarios on the same topic. Subsequently, the post-test was administered using a questionnaire that was identical to that of the pre-test.Results: The mean overall marks obtained in the pre-test was 14.73±1.87 (95% CI: 14.26-15.19), while that obtained in the post-test was 17.16±1.73 (95% CI: 16.73-17.59), exhibiting highly significant (p <0.00001) difference. The gender difference in scores was significant (p=0.011) for only question no. 1 in the pre-test and there was no significant gender difference in the post-test.Conclusions: A combined method of educational intervention was found to enhance the cognitive domain scores of students. Though a larger study would be needed to generalize the findings, male students seem to need an additional educational intervention to improve their cognitive domain scores. Despite time limitations in the teaching schedule for the first-year MBBS course, integrated teaching with case scenarios can be implemented to impart early clinical exposure.