Bridging Gaps in Teaching and Learning Biochemistry: A Qualitative Study

Authors

  • Syed Danish Haseen Ahmed Department of Biochemistry / Dow Medical College Karachi
  • Ambreen Usmani Department of Health Sciences / College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP), Bahria University of Medical & Dental College Karachi Pakistan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51253/pafmj.v74i2.9994

Keywords:

Biochemistry, Learning, Teaching, Medical education, Qualitative research, Biological sciences

Abstract

Objective: To identify the sources of learning gaps in biochemistry teaching and learning and explore new teaching and learning strategies, considering the students' perceptions and felt needs.

Study Design: Exploratory qualitative study (Social-constructivist philosophical worldview).

Place and Duration of Study: Public Sector Medical College, Pakistan, from Jul 2020 to Jul 2021.

Methodology: Students from all five years of medical college were recruited voluntarily after their written consent. Ten focus group discussions were conducted, each consisting of approximately 8 to 12 participants. Each session was recorded and then later transcribed verbatim. Verbatim FGDs were reviewed, and codes were given as the concept became recognizable. A code structure was developed via an inductive approach, and then sub-themes and themes were generated.

Results: Ten major themes were generated from the FGDs. These themes were teaching, students’ motivation, clinical irrelevance, educational needs, transition difficulty, attitudes, student support, senior peers, curriculum coherence, and assessment. These themes were further elucidated to explain the causes of the learning gaps and provide suggestions.

Conclusion: This study concludes that teaching, students’ motivation, clinical irrelevance, educational needs, difficulty in transition, student attitude, student support, senior peers, curriculum coherence, and assessment are the potential sources of the learning gap to achieve intended learning outcomes of biochemistry for medical students.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Malau-Aduli BS, Alele FO, Heggarty P, Teague PA, Sen Gupta T, Hays R, et al. Perceived clinical relevance and retention of basic sciences across the medical education continuum. Adv Physiol Educ 2019; 43(3): 293-299.

http://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00012.2019

Mbiydzenyuy NE, Chisompola NK. Basic Medical Sciences in Medical Education: A Thought for African Medical Schools. Med Sci Educ 2020; 31(1): 253-256.

http://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-020-01145-2

Afshar M, Han Z. Teaching and Learning Medical Biochemistry: Perspectives from a Student and an Educator. Med Sci Educ 2014; 24(3): 339-341. http://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-014-0004-7

Pienta NJ. The Role of Chemistry Education for Medical Preprofessionals. J Chem Educ 2017; 94(8): 981-982.

http://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.7b00527

Thomas PA, Kern DE, Hughes MT, Tackett SA, Chen BY. Curriculum development for medical education: A six-step approach. Johns Hopkins University Press; 2015.

Finnerty EP, Chauvin S, Bonaminio G, Andrews M, Carroll RG, Pangaro LN, et al. Flexner revisited: the role and value of the basic sciences in medical education. Acad Med 2010; 85(2): 349-55. http://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e3181c88b09

Woods NN. Science is fundamental: the role of biomedical knowledge in clinical reasoning. Med Educ 2007; 41(12): 1173-1177. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2007.02911.x

Sockalingam S, Hawa R, Al-Battran M, Abbey SE, Zaretsky A. Preparing international medical graduates for psychiatry residency: a multi-site needs assessment. Acad Psychiatry 2012; 36(4): 277-281. http://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ap.09110219

Oskvarek J, Braunstein S, Farnan J, Ferguson MK, Hahn O, Henderson T, et al. Medical Student Knowledge of Oncology and Related Disciplines: a Targeted Needs Assessment. J Cancer Educ 2016; 31(3): 529-532.

http://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-015-0876-2

Dandekar SP, Maksane SN, Mckinley DW. Design of Medical Biochemistry Undergraduate Laboratory Based Curriculum to Address Unmet Needs. South-East Asian J Med Educ 2017;11(1). 43-53. http://doi.org/10.4038/seajme.v11i1.8

D’Souza JM, Raghavendra U, D’Souza DH, D’Souza ND. Teaching learning of biochemistry in undergraduate medical curriculum: Perceptions and opinions of medical students. Educ Med J 2013; 5(2): e45-53. http://doi.org/10.5959/eimj.v5i2.109

Creswell JW, Poth CN. Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage Publications; 2016.

Krueger RA. Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research. Sage Publications; 2014.

Byrne D. A worked example of Braun and Clarke’s approach to reflexive thematic analysis. Qual Quant 2022; 56(3): 1391-1412. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-021-01182-y

Hafeez A, Jamil B, Khan AF. Roadblocks to Integration; Faculty's perspective on transition from Traditional to Integrated Medical Curriculum. Pak J Med Sci 2021; 37(3): 788-793.

http://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.3.3217

Dahdal S. Using the WhatsApp social media application for active learning. J Educ Technol Sys 2020; 49(2): 239–249. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047239520928307

Radmacher SA, Martin DJ. Identifying significant predictors of student evaluations of faculty through hierarchical regression analysis. J Psychol 2001; 135(3): 259-268.

http://doi.org/10.1080/00223980109603696

Krueger PM, Neutens J, Bienstock J, Cox S, Erickson S, Goepfert A, et al. To the point: reviews in medical education teaching techniques. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2004; 191(2): 408-411.

http://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2004.02.003

Custers EJ, Ten Cate OT. Medical clerks' attitudes towards the basic sciences: a longitudinal and a cross-sectional comparison between students in a conventional and an innovative curriculum. Med Teach 2007; 29(8): 772-777.

http://doi.org/10.1080/01421590701509696

West M, Mennin SP, Kaufman A, Galey W. Medical students' attitudes toward basic sciences: influence of a primary care curriculum. Med Educ 1982; 16(4): 188-191.

http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2923.1982.tb01246.x

McPhail G. The search for deep learning: A curriculum coherence model. J Curr Stud 2020; 53(4):420-434.

http://doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2020.1748231

Heflin H, Shewmaker J, Nguyen J. Impact of mobile technology on student attitudes, engagement, and learning. Comput Educ 2017; 107: 91-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2017.01.006

Downloads

Published

29-04-2024

Issue

Section

Original Articles

How to Cite

1.
Ahmed SDH, Ambreen Usmani. Bridging Gaps in Teaching and Learning Biochemistry: A Qualitative Study. Pak Armed Forces Med J [Internet]. 2024 Apr. 29 [cited 2024 Nov. 28];74(2):522-9. Available from: https://pafmj.org/PAFMJ/article/view/9994