Small group case discussions help increase first year MBBS students' interest in Biochemistry

Abstract

Background- It is often difficult to motivate first year medical students to study Biochemistry. Small group case           discussions constitute a teaching-learning method that requires active participation on the part of students. The objective of this study was to determine if small group case discussions could be used to increase interest in studying Biochemistry in first year medical students. Materials and methods- First year MBBS students of Christian Medical College, Vellore,                                Tamil Nadu - were the subjects of the study. Three separate sessions of clinical case-based discussions were held in small groups as a part of the Biochemistry teaching program. In each session, students were given a paper-based clinical case          scenario related to a topic in Biochemistry. They were given an hour to read up about the case. This was followed by a group discussion facilitated by a faculty member. At the end of each discussion, feedback was obtained from the students to              determine whether the discussion had stimulated their interest in the topic under discussion. Results- Before the discussion, the mean score for interest levels in the topics under discussion was 3.06 (SD 0.85) (out of a maximum of 5). The mean interest score after the discussion was 4.12 (SD 0.67). The increase in the mean score was statistically significant (p0.001).                       Conclusion- Small group case discussions were found to           increase the interest of first year medical students in studying Biochemistry.