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Background The central concept of homeostasis in human physiology requires an understanding of the fluid compartments that comprise the internal environment of the body and how specific variables are regulated within this environment. To solve physiology case studies and problems students must learn how to distinguish and employ valid evidence, relate the evidence to homeostatic mechanisms, and determine where in the homeostatic reflex to begin their thinking. Case studies are the focus of each class period, providing a relevant application of physiological concepts and a means of collaboratively developing analytical and critical thinking skills. Students are randomly placed in teams of 5 at the start of each semester.
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Physiology is the study of organism function and is considered the foundation for the study and practice of medicine. The expectation for my students upon graduation is that they will possess the knowledge and the skills to work collaboratively within science and medicine.
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Low Performance Team Snapshot [An Epic History] Getting Started '..apprehensive to the collaborative nature of the class.' '..lacked faith in the group.' 'Reports were done individually, exam preparation was individually focused, and group assignments were compiled by one person.' 'While all group members recognized that we were not functioning cohesively, no one was willing to propose an idea for change.' The End of the Semester Approaches 'The major turning point in our group came during week eleven when we implemented weekly group evaluation sheets for each member and personal evaluations.' Evaluation Criteria: group participation, communication, team work, class preparation, attitude, commitment to group, timeliness of data submission 'People were able to express their frustrations through quantitative evaluations, and members were able to see what the group thought of their performance.' 'Through personal evaluation each member was able to recognize their weaknesses and strengths, and identify ways to improve their performance during the subsequent week.' Summary 1. The semester was 70% completed before the group recognized and implemented a strategy for successful collaboration. 2. Did not reflect upon the application of their experience beyond the immediate situation.
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To better understand the student collaborative process and how team learning was contributing to development within the discipline, two assessments were added, a group history (report and presentation) and a competency evaluation determined for each team member by their peers. These assessments were modeled after two aspects of the health care profession, the patient history and the competency based curricular assessment employed in medical education. A comparison of team group history reports for a high performing and a low performing team whose team peer and competency evaluation average scores were consistent with their performance on semester exams and assignments provides insight into the role that team process and development play in the cultivating disciplinary thinking.
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High Performance Team Snapshot [Fueled by Cookies] Getting Started Uncomfortable with group format and all stated bad past experiences withgroup work. Set goals: (1) Ensure that every group member succeeds by group support. (2) Explore all possibilities and ideas together. (3) Become friends outside of class. The End of the Semester Approaches Each member composed answers to four points and presented them in a section titled 'Semester Group Evaluation and Development'. (1) Initial reactions to group and adjustments to group. 'I am very glad that this class was group based, because I feel that due to discussing the material with others, I gained a better understanding of it. It also forced me to meet some wonderful people and taught me the importance and benefits of team-work.' (2) Strengths developed by group. Cooperation, Social Skills, Leadership, Decision-making, Communication 'no one wanted to let the group down' (3) How will you apply what youve learned to future educational/personal endeavors? 'I realize that I have the ability to work well with others, contribute ideas and work as a team towards a common goal. these skills can be applied to working with members of the hospital staff.' 'When I become a molecular genetics researcher I hope to work with a team as great as my group this semester, rather than work alone.' (4) Memorable moment with group. '....preparing our group presentation and history chart.' group meetings and discussions. 'I enjoyed the study sessions with cooking and cookies.' Summary 1. This team developed a collaborative strategy and understanding early in the semester. 2. They reflected upon the application of their experience beyond the immediate situation.
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Semester exams, case-based and objective in format. Exams are given during a two-hour class period, where students spend the first hour working on their own with no resources and the second hour working on the same exam with their peer group members with the use of their textbook, class notes and laboratory applications manual. There has consistently been a 22-point increase in semester exam scores during the semesters when peer groups, rather than individuals,solve the very same exam. Similarly, performance on semester exams has consistently increased 22 percentage points from the first to the fourth exam.
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After each of the first two semester exams students are asked to reflect on their group participation and performance by completing a group evaluation form. Following the third and fourth semester exams students are asked to assign group members a point score that reflects peer participation and contribution to the group effort. The average of these two scores is applied to their semester point total.
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Conclusions to Inform Practice Early team development and the ability to envision future applications of lessons learned from the collaborative process may be critical to team and individual success in this collaborative learning environment. Peer evaluation, competency review, and charting team learning process appear to be powerful tools for reflection that can facilitate disciplinary skill development as well as the professional attitudes and behaviors necessary for collaboration in the disciplines and professions of physiology and medicine.
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