Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources

Changes in medical student learning preferences help drive innovation in teaching and require schools and commercial resources to quickly adapt. However, few studies have detailed the relationship of learner preferences to the environment and teaching modalities used in the pre-clerkship years, nor...

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Main Authors: Kristin Wong, Vidhi Kapoor, Alan Tso, Mary OConnor, David Convissar, Neil Kothari, Christin Traba
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2021-01-01
Series:Medical Education Online
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10872981.2021.1876316
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spelling doaj-0110d563696e418d81b61bf01efee4182021-02-08T14:09:08ZengTaylor & Francis GroupMedical Education Online1087-29812021-01-0126110.1080/10872981.2021.18763161876316Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resourcesKristin Wong0Vidhi Kapoor1Alan Tso2Mary OConnor3David Convissar4Neil Kothari5Christin Traba6Rutgers New Jersey Medical SchoolUniversity of WashingtonRutgers New Jersey Medical SchoolRutgers New Jersey Medical SchoolHarvard UniversityRutgers New Jersey Medical SchoolRutgers New Jersey Medical SchoolChanges in medical student learning preferences help drive innovation in teaching and require schools and commercial resources to quickly adapt. However, few studies have detailed the relationship of learner preferences to the environment and teaching modalities used in the pre-clerkship years, nor do they incorporate third-party resources. Our study attempts to analyze learner preferences by comparing the use of traditional and third-party resources. In 2017–18, a survey was distributed to medical students and residents at two accredited medical schools. Participants noted preferred styles of learning regarding lecture duration, timing, location, format, third-party resources, learner types and USMLE Step 1 scores. The ‘Learning Environment, Learning Processes, and Learning Outcomes’ (LEPO) framework [5] was used to examine learner preferences, with responses compared using the Mann-Whitney U and two proportion z-tests. A total of 329 respondents completed the survey: 62.7% medical students and 37.3% residents. The majority of participants identified their learning style by Kolb [6] as converging (33.0%) or accommodating (39.2%). Students preferred lectures 30–40 minutes long (43.3%), during morning hours (54.2%), in their own homes (52.0%), via online lectures with simultaneous drawings (56.0%), and classroom/podcast lectures with PowerPoint® presentations (54.3%). Overall, students rated third-party resource characteristics higher than traditional curricula, including effectiveness of teachers, length, quality, time of day, and venue (p < 0.001), but also preferred small group formats. Students reported animated videos (46.6%) and simultaneous drawings (46.5%) as the most effective means of retaining information. Understanding changing learner preferences is important in creating optimal curricula for today’s students. Using the LEPO framework, this study identifies critical preferences in successfully teaching medical students, inclusive of commercial and traditional resources. These results can also help guide changes in pedagogy necessary due to the more recent COVID-19 pandemic.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10872981.2021.1876316learning preferencesmedical studentstraditional resourcesthird-party resourceslearning environmentslearning processeslearning outcomesmedical school curricula
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Kristin Wong
Vidhi Kapoor
Alan Tso
Mary OConnor
David Convissar
Neil Kothari
Christin Traba
spellingShingle Kristin Wong
Vidhi Kapoor
Alan Tso
Mary OConnor
David Convissar
Neil Kothari
Christin Traba
Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
Medical Education Online
learning preferences
medical students
traditional resources
third-party resources
learning environments
learning processes
learning outcomes
medical school curricula
author_facet Kristin Wong
Vidhi Kapoor
Alan Tso
Mary OConnor
David Convissar
Neil Kothari
Christin Traba
author_sort Kristin Wong
title Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
title_short Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
title_full Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
title_fullStr Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
title_full_unstemmed Environments, processes, and outcomes - using the LEPO framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
title_sort environments, processes, and outcomes - using the lepo framework to examine medical student learning preferences with traditional and electronic resources
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
series Medical Education Online
issn 1087-2981
publishDate 2021-01-01
description Changes in medical student learning preferences help drive innovation in teaching and require schools and commercial resources to quickly adapt. However, few studies have detailed the relationship of learner preferences to the environment and teaching modalities used in the pre-clerkship years, nor do they incorporate third-party resources. Our study attempts to analyze learner preferences by comparing the use of traditional and third-party resources. In 2017–18, a survey was distributed to medical students and residents at two accredited medical schools. Participants noted preferred styles of learning regarding lecture duration, timing, location, format, third-party resources, learner types and USMLE Step 1 scores. The ‘Learning Environment, Learning Processes, and Learning Outcomes’ (LEPO) framework [5] was used to examine learner preferences, with responses compared using the Mann-Whitney U and two proportion z-tests. A total of 329 respondents completed the survey: 62.7% medical students and 37.3% residents. The majority of participants identified their learning style by Kolb [6] as converging (33.0%) or accommodating (39.2%). Students preferred lectures 30–40 minutes long (43.3%), during morning hours (54.2%), in their own homes (52.0%), via online lectures with simultaneous drawings (56.0%), and classroom/podcast lectures with PowerPoint® presentations (54.3%). Overall, students rated third-party resource characteristics higher than traditional curricula, including effectiveness of teachers, length, quality, time of day, and venue (p < 0.001), but also preferred small group formats. Students reported animated videos (46.6%) and simultaneous drawings (46.5%) as the most effective means of retaining information. Understanding changing learner preferences is important in creating optimal curricula for today’s students. Using the LEPO framework, this study identifies critical preferences in successfully teaching medical students, inclusive of commercial and traditional resources. These results can also help guide changes in pedagogy necessary due to the more recent COVID-19 pandemic.
topic learning preferences
medical students
traditional resources
third-party resources
learning environments
learning processes
learning outcomes
medical school curricula
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10872981.2021.1876316
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