Telementoring of Open and Laparoscopic Knot Tying and Suturing Is Possible: A Randomized Controlled Study

Aim Several motor learning models have been used to teach highly complex procedural skills in medical education. The aim of this randomized controlled trial was to assess the efficiency of telementoring of open and laparoscopic suturing of medical students compared to conventional in-person teaching and training. Methods After randomization, 23 medical students were assigned to either the telementoring or the in-person training group. Both groups were taught by surgically trained residence with a student–teacher ratio of 1:1 (teacher–student). Open suturing was assessed in a model of congenital diaphragmatic hernia and laparoscopic suturing in a model of bowel anastomosis. All subjects were trained according to the spaced learning concept for 3 hours. Primary end points were time, knot quality, precision, knot strength, and overall knotting performance/competency. Furthermore, we utilized the Surgery Task Load Index to evaluate the cognitive load of both teaching techniques. Students' subjective progress regarding skill acquisitions and acceptance of telementoring was assessed using a nine-item questionnaire. Results All 23 trainees significantly improved after training in all knot attributes. More than 90% of all subjects reached proficiency in both groups. In-person training and telementoring were similarly practical, and no significant differences regarding speed, knot quality, precision, knot stability, and procedure performance/competency were found. Students perceived no difference in acquisition of factual or applicational knowledge between the two groups. General acceptance of telementoring was moderate in both groups before training, but increased during training in students actually assigned to this group, in comparison to students assigned to conventional teaching. Conclusion The current study shows that telementoring of open and laparoscopic suturing is an ideal answer to the current coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, ensuring continuous training. On-site training and telementoring are similarly effective, leading to substantial improvement in proficiency in intracorporeal suturing and knot tying. Likewise, students' subjective progress regarding skill acquisitions and cognitive load does not differ between teaching methods. Skepticism toward telementoring decreases after exposure to this learning method. Given our results, telementoring should be considered a highly effective and resource-saving educational approach even after the current pandemic.

An educational approach for early student self-assessment in clinical periodontology

Background Self-assessment is a mandated educational requirement for use in dental undergraduate programmes. It is weakly supported for use in early clinical training and studies are criticized for the conceptual and methodology shortfalls. The aim of the study was to compare the alignment of student self-assessment to both staff assessment and written exams in early clinical training using an educational approach. Methods In 2014-2015, 55 third-year dental students completed three educational sessions comprising of (a) classroom teaching (lecture, video) with post-lesson written exam and (b) clinical activity with student self-assessment, staff assessment and student reflection. An intra-individual analysis approach, staff validation, and student scoring standardization were implemented. Cognitive (clinical competency) and non-cognitive (professionalism) items were separated in the analyses. Results There were medium correlations (Spearman’s rho, r) between student self-assessment and staff assessment scores for cognitive items (r, 0.32) and for non-cognitive items (r, 0.44) for all three combined sessions. There were large correlations for individual sessions. Compared to the post-lesson written exam, students showed small correlation (r, 0.22, 0.29) and staff showed medium correlation (r, 0.31, 0.34) for cognitive and non-cognitive items. Students showed improvements in their mean scores for both cognitive (t-test; p > 0.05) and non-cognitive items (t-test; p = 0.000). Mean scores of students were not different statistically from that of staff (p > 0.05). Conclusions Students may adequately act as self-assessors at the beginning of their clinical work in periodontology. Self-assessment may potentially improve the clinical performance. Self-assessment may be nurtured through clear guidelines, educational training strategies, feedback and reflection leading to better evaluative judgement and lifelong learning.

A intuição em ciências e matemática: uma abordagem educacional

A obra Intuition in Science and Mathematics: an Educational Approach, de Efrain Fischbein traz, primordialmente, uma proposta por um viés teórico que abrange o domínio da intuição. Assim, o autor busca identificar e organizar resultados experimentais relacionados à intuição, bem como revelar suas implicações no âmbito educacional da ideia, desenvolvido para a ciência e difundido em uma ampla variedade de contextos de pesquisa e educação matemática.

Project-Based Learning in Chemical Engineering

Solutions to global challenges need a range of engineers with diverse skills and attributes, and it is the responsibility of engineering educators to shape the engineering education landscape, using their problem-solving expertise to educate future engineers for modern technological advances. Project-based learning (PjBL) is an educational approach that can integrate such needed skills and attributes into the curriculum. However, delivering a truly effective PjBL approach can be quite difficult without considering a holistic approach encompassing three key pillars: PjBL curriculum and assessment, PjBL culture, and physical and online PjBL spaces. This chapter presents a comprehensive overview of how PjBL has been successfully deployed across the Chemical Engineering curriculum at the University of Nottingham, UK, through the lenses of those pillars, and in the form of design projects, with a progressive integration and development of diverse skills and competencies throughout the years.

Students’ Perceptions of Content- and Language- Integrated Learning in Vietnam: A Survey Study

Content- and language-integrated learning (CLIL), an educational approach, in which the subject matter is taught in a foreign language. This has become popular in tertiary education. Many research studies have shown its benefits and discussed the favorable effects, especially with respect to L2 language gains. Yet, critical voices, also from the primary stakeholders, namely the students taking part in such integrated programs, have also been heard. In an effort to integrate into the international academic and scientific community, universities in Vietnam have also started to teach academic courses in English. The main objective of this cross-sectional survey study (N=104) was to explore Vietnamese students’ perceptions of such dual-training programs and to investigate to what extent they feel the program currently meets their needs. Our findings show that both lecturers and students are struggling in these courses, for one thing, because of insufficient levels of mastery of the English language; while for another reason, since courses cannot be characterized as courses in which disciplinary contents and the foreign language are taught in an integrated way. The way forward seems to be to educate the lecturers and the students well, before allowing them to participate in CLIL English courses. All these issues need to be considered in the context of local Vietnamese educational realities and traditions.

CLIL IN TOURISM STUDENTS’ MULTICULTURAL COMPETENCE DEVELOPMENT

The current study aims at implementation of the Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) as an educational approach in tourism students’ multicultural competence development. To achieve the goal, a mixed-method was chosen, which implied the use of quantitative and qualitative research methods. The quantitative method was used to process the test results of tourism students and determine the statistical significance of the results obtained during the experiment, the qualitative method was used to analyse and interpret the results. 25tourism students of V. I. Vernadsky Taurida National University took part in the experimental study in 2020-2021 academic year. According to the results, due to CLIL classes the students’ theoretical knowledge and practical skills in the field of tourism, the ability to interact with representatives of other countries and cultures and to solve professional problems in the conditions of foreign language communication in the intercultural environment, have been increased. Additionally, the knowledge, skills and abilities of the tourism students; the pedagogical conditions of successful CLIL implementation; the methodological recommendations for developing the multicultural competence on the base of CLIL and the specifics of implementing CLIL in the educational process of the tourism students were defined. It was concluded that the use of CLIL in tourism students’ multicultural competence development helps to diversify foreign language learning at the university level and facilitates the development of professional communicative skills.

Assessment of an Educational Intervention on the Perception of Adolescent Girls towards Menstrual Hygiene in Ogun State, Nigeria

In low and middle-income countries, menstruation is impeded by several misconceptions, taboos and shrouded in secrecy. This serves as a major challenge to proper Education regarding menstrual hygiene and has blocked the access of adolescent girls to the right kind of information, thereby influencing a negative outcome associated with harmful behaviours. The objective of the study was to investigate the assessment of an educational intervention on the perception of adolescent girls towards menstrual hygiene in Ogun state, Nigeria. The study utilized a quasi-experimental design. One hundred and twenty (120) in-school adolescent girls were selected through a multistage sampling technique from four (4) secondary schools within four (4) local government areas in Ogun State, Nigeria. A validated 23-items questionnaire measured on a 69-point rating scale with a Cronbach Alpha scores 0.79 was used for data collection. The mean ±SD age and age at menarche of adolescent girls was 14.92±1.82; 12.73±1.38. The majority of respondents had low scores of perceptions. The educational intervention had an effective change in the level of perception of adolescent schoolgirls between baseline and the 6th-week follow-up, indicating a mean difference of 26.70 (p<0.01) for the peer-led, 26.54(p<0.01) parent-led, 20.16(p<0.01) parent and peer-led and a decrease in mean in the control group (-0.17; p=0.866). The peer-led educational approach had a better impact on adolescent girls’ perception compared to other educational approaches. Hence, this is an indication that peer-education strategies should be utilized for further interventions and in reaching out to adolescents.

The peculiarities of practical classes structure during the distance learning on morphology orientated departments

Background. Nowadays distance learning is a necessary measure under pandemic circumstances, therefore, it is important to find out mechanisms to improve its effectiveness. Objective is to increase the efficiency of practical classes’ results during distance learning. Methods. Sixty third course international EAs (specialty "222 Medicine", second master's level) were divided into two equal groups with two different teaching approaches of practical classes: control with classical one (material discussion followed by the practical skills implementation) and experimental with a changed indicated stages order. The data of 3 controls (pretest, intermediate test and posttest) during practical classes in the course of one semester were analyzed by criteria for non-normal distribution. Results. Pretest and posttest results were not significantly different in both tested and control groups within different performing level EAs (p>0.05). The data of intermediate tests were familiar in groups of EAs who permanently have either average (p>0.05) or insufficient grades (p>0.05), but increased in groups of EAs with constant low (p≤0,05) and high (p<0,05) scores. Conclusion. Our study showed that academic performance did not heavily depend on performed practical classes’ structure. However, the critical discussion of low- and high-performing EAs' mistakes lead to improvement of their understanding of nuances of gross specimen and slide description, in other words, the implementation of a number of special and general competencies enhancement. All in all, data showd that exit control results as well as final grades depended not so much on the educational approach, but on the EAs' self-study.

Framework for CLIL materials for Russian heritage language learners

The increasing number of immigrants made heritage language learning a crucial issue of 21-st century education. The neediness for an effective educational approach in this field leaded to CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning). CLIL materials are high-contextualized by age, skills, language, subject content, etc. So, teachers ought to become materials designers to provide their learners with an effective tool of learning. Usually, teachers did not specifically train for materials design. Thus, easy-to-use framework for materials is essential to provide high-quality materials. This article provides a framework for CLIL materials design for Russian heritage language learners. The framework is based on the main materials design principles, heritage learners` pedagogical needs, and CLIL-specific materials design principles. It is written in the easy-to-use form of a checklist. The checklist has seven sections and 32 questions. The framework may be used in different contexts of teachers from different countries who use CLIL to teach the Russian heritage language.