Impact of a Student Response System on Short- and Long-Term Learning in a Drug Literature Evaluation Course |
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Authors: | Flora C Liu Jacob P Gettig Nancy Fjortoft |
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Institution: | Midwestern University Chicago College of Pharmacy |
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Abstract: | ObjectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness of a student response system on short- and long-term learning in a required second-year pharmacy course.MethodStudent volunteers enrolled in the course Drug Literature Evaluation were blinded and randomized to 1 of 2 groups. Group 1 attended a lecture in which the instructor used a student response system. Group 2 attended the same lecture by the same instructor an hour later, but no student response system was used. A 16-point unannounced quiz on the lecture material was administered to both groups at the end of class. Approximately 1 month later, both groups were given another unannounced quiz on the same material to test long-term student learning.ResultsOne hundred seventy-nine (92.3%) students participated in both quizzes. Students who attended the class in which the student response system was used scored an average 1 point higher on quiz 1 than students who were assigned to the control group (10.7 vs. 9.7; p = 0.02). No significant difference was seen between the quiz 2 scores of the 2 groups (9.5 vs. 9.5; p = 0.99).ConclusionsThe use of a student response system can positively impact students'' short-term learning; however, that positive effect did not appear to last over time. Faculty members may want to consider the use of student response systems to enhance student learning in large lecture classes. |
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Keywords: | audience response system student learning active learning |
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