Peer Assisted Learning in a Large Class Format

This article was migrated. The article was not marked as recommended. Introduction: Most of the research around peer assisted learning (PAL) has been directed towards the contribution of PAL in small groups for both knowledge and skill gains. Although PAL has been used for didactic sessions like lectures or presentations in tutorials, the dynamics of PAL in these sessions are not well researched. We therefore designed this study to explore the acceptance and perceived usefulness of didactic PAL sessions in a large class format. Method: Peer assisted learning was incorporated in a Urology module for 4th year MBBS students. Students were assigned topics in groups to prepare and present in front of the whole class. The presentations were followed by question answer sessions by students in the presence of the teacher. The teacher summed up the session at the end.The perception of students was assessed using an electronically distributed questionnaire regarding acceptance and usefulness of PAL. The usefulness was also assessed by rating student presentations for content, explanation of concepts, and number of questions asked by the peers. A focus group (FGD) was also conducted to explore student perceptions on engagement in this didactic large class PAL in depth. Results: Seventy-three students participated in the survey (Response Rate = 73.7%). Students were neutral for both acceptability (Mean= 3.08, SD= 0.72) and usefulness (Mean= 3.20, SD= 0.54) of PAL in the given setting. Only 25% of students demonstrated content adequacy in their primary effort for presentation, 10% explained all concepts, 40% explained at least major concepts while 40% just read the slides. Students asked more questions from peer tutors than teachers (Mean= 1.14, SD= 0.80 vs 1.75, SD= 0.89, p < 0.05). Majority of the students agreed that they found the teacher review on their presentation as most useful (84.9%), followed by the group work involved (75.3%).Analysis of the descriptive questions and FGD identified both positive and negative aspects of PAL sessions. Several themes are discussed in each category. Conclusion: Didactic PAL is acceptable and useful in large class format although it loses some of its advantages. Teacher feedback and background collaborative learning remain the most valued aspects of this format.