Examination of Active Learning by Sketching on the Academic Performance of Students Studying Embryology

Background Active learning is a teaching method that strives to include students in the learning process via engagement in hands on activities, flipped classroom, group work and team‐based learning contrasted to passive learning primarily through didactic lecture. Active learning has also been shown to enhance student learning and performance, especially when studying difficult concepts. In a Gross Anatomy and Human Embryology course for Medical Illustration students, students attend lectures, complete dissections, and participate in biweekly cadaver sketch critiques. While students perform quite well in the gross anatomy portion of the course, many struggle with Embryology. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of adding biweekly sketching of embryological processes as an active learning activity to engage students in embryology. We hypothesize that by adding this active learning element into the course, students' knowledge and understanding of human development will increase as reflected by their academic performance. Methods Required biweekly embryology sketches were introduced into a Gross Anatomy and Human Embryology curriculum in conjunction with biweekly cadaver sketches that were already part of the curriculum. The sketching assignments involve presenting a sketch of an embryological process or cadaveric dissection and then discussing the accuracy of the peer presented sketches. Academic performance was assessed via grades on exams. Students who participated in the course in 2015 with only didactic lectures for embryology (passive learners; n=6) were compared with those in 2016, who completed biweekly embryology sketches (active learners; n=9). Mean scores were compared among passive and active learners using two‐sample t‐tests (p<0.05). Students also completed a course exit survey to gather supplemental information regarding study habits, time spent learning embryology, use of sketching outside of a classroom setting and percentage of knowledge retained. Results Overall embryology grades increased from 76.5% for passive learners to 84.0% for active learners (p<0.05) after the addition of the biweekly embryology sketching activities from 2015 to 2016. While the embryology sketching activity had no effect on students' performance on the first block of embryology content tested (79.3% passive learners vs 79.9% active learners), active learners tested significantly better on subsequent exams in the course (2 nd exam: 86.1% active learners vs 75.0% passive learners; 3 rd exam: 86% active learners vs 79% passive learners; p<0.05). When surveyed at the end of the semester, passive learners commented that they reviewed embryology only a few days prior to the exams and did little or no active learning activities to help them study. In contrast, active learners commented that the sketching activity helped them work through various difficult embryological processes and that they studied before the sketch activities to be able to give proper feedback to their peers. Conclusions Overall, the addition of active learning into a human embryology component improved students' performance and knowledge. Students benefit from an engaging active learning activity, which they are not otherwise doing on their own. The academic improvement due to active learning highlights the importance of student involvement in their learning process.