Theme
Basic Sciences and Clinical Integration
INSTITUTION
Discipline of Physiology,
School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences,
University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), South Africa.
Approaches in the identification and response to Health Science students who are struggling with their studies, particularly in our context namely large, diverse and multi-disciplinary modules, are receiving increased awareness1,2,3.
Our research has shown that Health Science (HS) students at UKZN perform better in their professional as compared to their physiology modules4. Pass rates of physiology modules have tended to be low and have steadily declined, particularly in the first year basic physiology module taken in the first semester (see Figure below).
The focus of this study is the first year, first semester Health Science module, HPHS111. This module is taken by students from 5 different Health Science programmes, namely Audiology (AUD), Dental Therapy (DTH), Speech Language Pathology (SLP), Sport Science (SPS), and Diploma in Oral Health (DIOH).
On-going assessments include 2 Class Tests, 2 Tutorial Test and Practical Reports. These are used to calculate a Semester Mark. The final Module Mark is the sum of the Exam/Supplementary Exam Result + Semester Mark, which is expressed as a %.
A system does exist at our Institution to detect “students at risk”. However, its activation is dependent on completion of the module. Thus students taking HPHS111 are not flagged until it is too late, unless they are students repeating the course.
There is therefore an urgent need to devise a strategy to identify “struggling” students early on during the semester.
Ethical Clearance for study was FECHSC 007/10.
Using biographical data, correlation analyses were undertaken of various performance indicators based on qualification, gender, home language and admission points etc.
Student performance in Test 1, not Tut Test 1, was found to be a good predictor of their performance in the module (See Figure below).
It is also clear that student performance in the first class test is a valuable tool to identify struggling students. Appropriate testing should be held as early as possible.
Based on our findings, the following interventions have been implemented:
* All repeating students to be flagged from beginning of Semester
* All failing students now interviewed by academic development officer
* All above mentioned students offered & encouraged to attend academic support sessions
* Student motivation and attitude is being addressed in various ways
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Garrud P, Yates J. Profiling strugglers in a graduate entry medicine course at Nottingham: a retrospective case study. BMC Med Educ 12: 124, 2012 (doi:10.1186/1472-6920-12-124).
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Shaban S, McLean M. Predicting performance at medical school: can we identify at-risk students? Advances in Medical Education & Practice 2: 139-148, 2011.
- McLaughin K, Veale P, McIlwrick J, de Groot J, Wright B. A practical approach to mentoring students with repeated performance deficiencies. BMC Medical Education 13: 56, 2013 (doi: 10.1186/1472-6920-13-56).
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Demographic Data of 2011 HPHS111 Class (n=214)
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Correlations were performed in terms of:
1) Gender 2) Qualification 3) Home language 4) Types of Testing
Some examples of the results of the various analyses are illustrated in the Figures below.
For types of testing, various correlations and combinations (i.e. in terms of gender, qualifications, home language) were performed, including
We would like to thank the 2011 HPHS111 students for their participation in the study and Ms Zodwa Khoza for data entry.
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