Effectiveness of an audience response system in teaching pharmacology to baccalaureate nursing students

Strategies to Inspire Students' Engagement in Pharmacology Courses

Pharmacology is a distinct discipline and offers core knowledge to broaden student programs in the provision of health care (medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and others) as well as research-oriented programs (biosciences and biomedical). Therefore, knowledge and information on topics such as prescribing medication, drug interactions, dosage adjustments, and the correct drug dose calculation for medicine are essential for preventing and reducing medication errors, which is a key element in patient safety. Recently, many institutions have been trying to enhance their quality of teaching, as students demand support and success in their studies. Pharmacology is a highly challenging interdisciplinary topic, and requires a huge effort from both educators and students to achieve the best outcomes. Therefore, creating an effective environment to support students' learning in pharmacology courses is essential to improving students' engagement, success and learning outcomes. In recent decades, the landscape of education has changed, and distance learning has skyrocketed. This manuscript intends to discuss and highlight the importance of student engagement in higher education in pharmacology courses. Additionally, this paper spotlights and presents a review of recent studies focusing on student engagement in pharmacology courses and possible methods for enhancing and inspiring student engagement in pharmacology courses.

A systematic review of audience response systems in pharmacy education

BACKGROUND

Audience response systems (ARS) are increasingly being used to support learning and assessment. Despite widespread use, the effects on educational outcomes and student learning are largely unknown. The objective of this systematic review was to assess the impacts of using ARS in pharmacy education.

METHODS

A literature search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar, and three pharmacy education journals. Articles were eligible for inclusion if they reported outcomes relating to the use of ARS in student pharmacist education and were published in English.

RESULTS

Eleven studies were included. Endpoints related to course grades, information recall, student perceptions, and faculty perceptions. Few studies were identified that assessed the impact of ARS on course grades and those that did reported mixed results. ARS demonstrated improved student recall immediately following an educational activity but effects were not lasting. Students had positive perceptions regarding ARS classroom use, especially for participation, engagement, and attention to educational content. Faculty members were positive towards the use of ARS for teaching purposes but expressed concerns regarding the use for assessment.

IMPLICATIONS

The use of ARS positively benefited student participation and engagement in the classroom setting, as a tool to enhance active learning. Positive perceptions from faculty and feasibility of use also support that ARS may be an effective teaching strategy to better engage students in the learning process. The impact on student academic performance is inconclusive and must be further explored.

The utility and impact of information communication technology (ICT) for pre-registration nurse education: A narrative synthesis systematic review

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate and summarise the utility and impact of information communication technology (ICT) in enhancing student performance and the learning environment in pre-registration nursing.

DESIGN

A systematic review of empirical research across a range of themes in ICT health-related education.

DATA SOURCES

Science Direct, Cinahl, AMED, MEDLINE, PubMed, ASSIA, OVID and OVID SP (2008-2014). Further date parameters were imposed by theme.

REVIEW METHODS

Evidence was reviewed by narrative synthesis, adopting Caldwell's appraisal framework and CASP for qualitative methods. Selection and inclusion was grounded in the PICOS structure, with language requirements (English), and further parameters were guided by theme appropriateness.

RESULTS

Fifty studies were selected for review across six domains: reusable learning objects, media, audience response systems, e-portfolios, computer-based assessment and faculty adoption of e-learning. Educational ICT was found to be non-inferior to traditional teaching, while offering benefits to teaching and learning efficiency. Where support is in place, ICT improves the learning environment for staff and students, but human and environmental barriers need to be addressed.

CONCLUSION

This review illuminates more advantages for ICT in nurse training than previously. The key advantage of flexibility is supported, though with little evidence for effect on depth of learning.

Using Audience Response Systems to Enhance Chronic, Noncancer Pain Knowledge Acquisition Among Veterans

BACKGROUND

Educating patients on factual information related to chronic pain and self-management improves knowledge, pain outcomes, and compliance. The current study assesses changes in pain knowledge among veterans who attended a 12-week "Pain Education School" and examines whether or not the addition of an active learning component (i.e., use of an audience response system [ARS]) leads to greater increases in pain knowledge.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A sample of 102 veterans 24-84 years of age who elected to participate in the 12-week pain education program was evaluated. Only a subgroup of veterans (n=69) had access to the ARS.

RESULTS

A 2×2 repeated-measures multivariate analyses of variance was conducted to examine changes in pain knowledge, pain beliefs, stage of readiness to adopt a self-management approach, and depressive symptoms over time and to explore the impact of ARS use on pain knowledge acquisition. Participants reported a statistically significant difference between their pre- and posttest measures of pain beliefs (p=0.04), stage of readiness to adopt a self-management approach (p=0.00), and depressive symptoms (p=0.00). Veterans who used the ARS demonstrated significantly greater increases in pain knowledge acquisition after completing the pain education program than those who did not (p=0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

Findings provide support for the incorporation of ARS in pain education programming to facilitate active learning and to increase knowledge acquisition. Findings also provide evidence for the effectiveness of pain education programs in improving veterans' attitudes about their pain, increasing readiness to engage in self-management, and decreasing depressive symptoms.

Examining the benefits of learning based on an audience response system when confronting emergency situations

This article presents an empirical study on the effectiveness of the use of an audience response system called SIstema De Respuesta inmediata de la Audiencia on a nursing course. A total of 130 students of mixed gender, age, and computer experience and educational background on a third-year course in nursing administration and management participated in the study. The benefits of an audience response system as regards learning how to confront emergency situations were studied. The innovative aspect of the proposal is twofold: (1) the use of a smartphone to respond to the questions and (2) the analysis of the students' response time when confronting critical situations while managing nursing resources. A positive impact on the students' performance was revealed in their final assessments. Our findings show that SIstema De Respuesta inmediata de la Audiencia increases student participation and aids in identifying and correcting misconceptions. The students found SIstema De Respuesta inmediata de la Audiencia to be very motivating and wanted it to be used in additional lectures. Further research is required to study the effectiveness of SIstema De Respuesta inmediata de la Audiencia for it to be widely used in other disciplines.