Role of Immediate Personalized Verbal Feedback to First Year Medical Undergraduates During Formative Physiology Practical Test

ABSTRACT

Background: Timely given feedback is useful for cognitive performance during academic learning. Immediatefeedback is more effective than delayed feedback. Immediate problem solving is acceptable than massknowledge transfer.Aim and Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of immediate feedback during clinical examination forimprovement of cognitive learning and skills of 1st MBBS students.Methodology: Immediate feedback versus no feedback was checked during formative practical test. Immediatefeedback was given to one practical batch (B Batch= 32 students) of 1st MBBS students during theirformative practical test. At the same time feedback was not given to second batch (A Batch= 33 students)of same academic year. Evaluation of feedback was done during next formative practical examinations.Formative Physiology practical examination was taken by Objective structured practical examination (OSPE).Results: Students of study group (B batch, n=32) who received individual face to face feedback performedwell as compared to control group (A batch, n=33) who didn’t received feedback. The marks of clinicalexamination for study group, before feedback was 12.12±2.19 and after the feedback was 17.59±1.72.Difference between the marks of two exams in study group is 5.4 and it is around 27.35%. The marks ofcontrol group at the time of initial exam was 14.09±3.18 and during next exam was 16.39±1.86. Differencebetween the marks of two exams in control group is 2.3 and it was around 11.5%.Conclusions: Results showed that immediate feedback during clinical (practical) assessment had a statisticallysignificant positive effect on learning gains. Immediate verbal feedback is positively associated with learning.In order to facilitate role of immediate verbal feedback during formative assessment needs further supportiveevidence from large longitudinal studies from multicenter.