The Effect of Gender on Team-Based Learning Peer Assessment in a Psychiatry Clerkship

In medical education, the team-based learning method (TBL) is a teaching strategy used to intensify interactive learning in small groups, in which the student is given the role of evaluating his/her peers - peer assessment (PA). To investigate the interference of the students' interpersonal relationships in awarding their peers grades (''halo effect''). A qualitative and quantitative retrospective study. The study participants were 78 first-year medical students, divided into 17 teams for the TBL. The final grade of the PA for each member was calculated by the average of the grades received from their peers. Results: The comparison between the average of the evaluations in the TBL method (MTBLs) and the PA showed that 17.64% of the teams showed a significant difference between the grades, thus having the “halo effect”. In the qualitative analysis, the “halo effect” was evidenced in only one of these teams. Although many studies corroborate the idea that using PA in the formative assessment is appropriate, advancing in the use of PA in the summative assessment is necessary, integrating it into the institution's evaluation system. Data presented here can help in continuing its use and in increasing its reliability.

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Navigating the Complexities of Evaluating Team-Based Learning in the Graduate Classroom

Pedagogy in Health Promotion ◽

10.1177/2373379918819533 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 254-260

Author(s):

Shannon L. Sibbald ◽

Ava John-Baptiste ◽

Mark Speechley

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Group Work ◽

Peer Assessment ◽

Public Health Practice ◽

Health Educators ◽

Unequal Distribution ◽

Team Members ◽

Interdisciplinary Field ◽

Team Based Learning ◽

Team Functioning

Team-based learning (TBL) appeals to public health educators because it mimics the real world of public health practice. Public health is an interdisciplinary field in which practitioners from various professional backgrounds come together to apply their different skills and competencies to a steadily changing array of public health problems. In addition to fostering synergistic learning, TBL can break down barriers between people from different professions and backgrounds. Many students have had past negative experiences with group work such as perceptions of unequal distribution of work and responsibility among team members. TBL extends beyond group work by supporting a pedagogical philosophy to empower students. Various methods of peer assessment have been proposed that embolden team members to evaluate one another’s contributions to group learning. We describe our TBL approach along with the strategies we employ to mitigate this particular challenge associated with TBL. Overall, we believe our approach to peer assessment in the context of TBL to be effective; students are more satisfied with the authentic assessment, and it has led to improved team functioning.

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