Exploring student perceptions and attitude towards various aspects of peer feedback in a pharmacotherapy course

An Integrative Review of Approaches Used to Assess Course Interventions

Objective. The objectives of this review are to describe the utility of approaches used for the assessment of course interventions in pharmacy education and to provide recommendations that may guide faculty members in their scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) efforts that encompass assessment of course interventions.Findings. Thirty-four articles that included educational interventions published between 2016 and 2020 in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education and Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning were selected for analysis. Those articles used various approaches for the assessment of course interventions. In the order of decreasing frequency of use, those methods were surveys, student academic performance, student evaluations, mixed quantitative and qualitative methods, pre- and posttest, and learning analytics.Summary. The use of more than one assessment approach, ie, triangulation, and multiple student cohorts are advantageous. When multiple cohorts are used, it is beneficial to present the students' demographic information. Student academic performance should be part of an assessment of course interventions whenever relevant. Surveys about student perceptions and confidence may contribute to the assessment of course interventions. However, since the information collected is subjective and is usually unrelated to student learning, such an approach should be coupled with other assessment approaches that reflect student learning, such as academic performance and/or a pre- and a posttest. Depending on the research question, qualitative methods and learning analytics may also be a part of the assessment of course interventions.

Reflective Practice: Co-Creating Reflective Activities for Pharmacy Students

Reflective practice is important in pharmacy education to support skill development for decision-making, critical thinking, problem-solving, and in continuing professional development and beyond. Despite the importance of reflective practice in higher education and professional practice, reflection assignments are not universally embraced by students. This project was initiated due to recent interest in the co-creation of pharmacy curriculum by students and faculty. The purpose of this project was to develop reflection assignments for pharmacy students. The principles of the analysis, design, development, implementation, evaluation (ADDIE) instructional design framework guided the development of reflection assignment templates for three focus areas: personal development, professional development, and professional identity formation. Templates included background and definitions for these specific focus areas as well as objectives, instructions, guiding questions, assessment methods, and submission requirements. A previously tested assessment rubric was adopted for reflection assignments. Development involved target audience and expert reviews and a trial implementation was held in a year 3 patient care skills course. The co-creation process enriched the experiences of students and faculty involved in it. Future co-creation projects including groups of students, formal evaluation of outcomes, and impact on the program will further support integration of reflective practice in the pharmacy curriculum.

Pharmacy students' intrinsic motivation to participate in electronic peer review of journal article critique assignments

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Journal article critiques are frequently used to teach literature evaluation to pharmacy students. Peer review is one method to improve students' competency regarding journal article critiques. The objective of this manuscript is to describe implementation of electronic peer review of journal article critique drafts and explore students' intrinsic motivation to participate in the peer-review process. Influence of students' motivation to participate in peer review on their self-competence regarding journal article critiques was also explored.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING

Second-year pharmacy students participated in three in-class, electronic, anonymous peer-review sessions for written journal article critique drafts. Students were invited to complete a 16-item survey instrument based on self-determination theory. Modified Intrinsic Motivation Inventory and Perceived Competence Scales assessed student interest in and perceived value of the peer-review sessions and their self-competence regarding journal article critiques.

FINDINGS

The survey response rate was 99% (146/148). Based on a Likert scale of 1 (not at all true) to 7 (very true), students demonstrated moderate interest in the peer-review sessions (M = 3.86), viewed them as valuable (M = 5.25), and had a moderate level of self-competence regarding journal article critiques (M = 3.74). Additionally, interest and perceived value of the peer-review sessions significantly influenced self-competence in completing journal article critiques.

SUMMARY

An anonymous, electronic peer-review system provides an efficient method for in-class peer review of draft assignments. Implementing strategies to increase student interest in peer review may increase their motivation for participation and ultimately improve self-competence regarding literature evaluation.