title: A Novel Teaching Tool Combined With Active-Learning to Teach Antimicrobial Spectrum Activity.
abstract: Objective.To design instructional methods that would promote long-term retention of knowledge of antimicrobial pharmacology, particularly the spectrum of activity for antimicrobial agents, in pharmacy students.Design.An active-learning approach was used to teach selected sessions in a required antimicrobial pharmacology course. Students were expected to review key concepts from the course reader prior to the in-class sessions. During class, brief concept reviews were followed by active-learning exercises, including a novel schematic method for learning antimicrobial spectrum of activity ("flower diagrams").Assessment.At the beginning of the next quarter (approximately 10 weeks after the in-class sessions), 360 students (three yearly cohorts) completed a low-stakes multiple-choice examination on the concepts in antimicrobial spectrum of activity. When data for students was pooled across years, the mean number of correct items was 75.3% for the items that tested content delivered with the active-learning method vs 70.4% for items that tested content delivered via traditional lecture (mean difference 4.9%). Instructor ratings on student evaluations of the active-learning approach were high (mean scores 4.5-4.8 on a 5-point scale) and student comments were positive about the active-learning approach and flower diagrams.Conclusion.An active-learning approach led to modestly higher scores in a test of long-term retention of pharmacology knowledge and was well-received by students.
authors.affiliation: University of California - San Francisco School of Pharmacy, San Francisco, California.
authors.forename: Conan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: MacDougall
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004512:Education, Pharmacy / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D010601:Pharmacology, Clinical / Q000193:education*; D018794:Problem-Based Learning / Q000379:methods*; D013339:Students, Pharmacy
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents
keywords: active learning; antimicrobial agents; instructional design