Interactive peer-guided examination preparation course for second-year international full-time medical students: quantitative and qualitative evaluation

• Published in: GMS journal for medical education Vol. 35; no. 5; p. Doc57
• Main Authors: Huhn, Daniel, Al Halabi, Karam, Alhalabi, Obada, Armstrong, Christina, Castell Morley, Alexandra, Herzog, Wolfgang, Nikendei, Christoph
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; German
• Published: Germany German Medical Science GMS Publishing House 01.01.2018
• Subjects: Curriculum - standards; Education, Medical, Undergraduate - methods; Education, Medical, Undergraduate - standards; evaluation; examination preparation course; Female; Germany; Humans; international medical students; Internationality; Licensure - trends; Male; Peer Group; Qualitative Research; Students, Medical - psychology; Students, Medical - statistics & numerical data; Surveys and Questionnaires; Test Taking Skills - methods; Test Taking Skills - standards; Universities - organization & administration; Universities - standards; Young Adult; Germany; evaluation; international medical students; examination preparation course
• ISSN: 2366-5017; 2366-5017
• DOI: 10.3205/zma001203

It has been documented that international students face diverse challenges due to language and cultural barriers. International medical students suffer from personal distress, a lack of support and perform poorer than local fellow-students in clinical examinations. It has been documented that international medical students benefit from peer-led tutorials in their first year. We investigated the effectiveness of a tutorial offered for international medical students in their second year. A peer-guided examination preparation course with interactive elements for second year international medical students was designed, learning objectives were defined. Two evaluations were undertaken: In a quantitative assessment, students were asked to fill out five multiple-choice-questions at the beginning of every session of the tutorial (pre-test) as well as to participate in a post-test at the end of the semester in which all former multiple-choice-questions were re-used. Using a qualitative approach, participants were asked for their thoughts and comments in a semi-structured interview at the end of the semester. International students (N=12) showed significantly better results in the post- than in the pre-test (t(11)=-8.48, p<.001, d=1.95). Within the interviews, international students (N=10) reported to have benefited from technical and didactic, as well as social learning experiences. The individual lectures students were asked to contribute were discussed controversially. Our peer-guided tutorial for second year international medical students is an effective and well accepted possibility to prepare these students for examinations.