Study of Live Lecture Attendance, Student Perceptions and Expectations

Abstract

Declining lecture attendance has been an ongoing concern for educators involved in undergraduate medical education. A survey was developed (a) to gain insight into the reasons students skipped class, (b) to identify the type of study materials they were using, and (c) to determine what they thought would motivate them to come to class. The survey was sent to 317 first-year and second-year medical students, and 145 (45%) responded. Only 63% of first-year students and 53% of second-year students attended any lectures that were not mandatory. The attendance was higher for students who aspired to less competitive specialties such as pediatrics and family medicine. The most popular reasons for not coming to class were related to the efficiency of information intake and instructor or class style. The most heavily used resources (> 60%) were materials or recorded lectures provided by the instructor. The second-year students also heavily used outside study materials for Board exams, such as Pathoma (50%). Students’ ideas for what might increase their attendance suggest that they perceive that the lectures may not prepare them for Board exams, and they would like faculty to address Board related content more often in class and on assessments. Respondents also suggested that teaching practices might be improved through faculty development. Faculty awareness of and references to Board exam content, embedded in strong teaching practices, may help students find more value in live lectures. Carefully designed active learning sessions may change students’ minds regarding the relevance and value of these sessions.

Letter to the Editor: Study of Live Lecture Attendance, Student Perceptions and Expectations

“…We read with great interest the article by Emahiser et al which investigates the reasons for declining live lecture attendance among undergraduate medical students [1]. As final year medical students at British medical schools, we full-heartedly support the authors view that carefully tailored active learning sessions may improve live lecture attendance.…”

“…We feel that this is a better suited style of learning for medical students as it helps us demonstrate our practical application of knowledge onto clinical scenarios. We also agree that the possible main contributor to poor live lecture attendance is whether lecture material is beneficial to Board exam learning [1]. As medical students, we understand that time is valuable and attending lectures that do not meet our academic needs to pass Board exams is counterintuitive towards our learning.…”

“…At Peninsula Medical School, lecture attendance is mandatory. As also explained in Emahiser et al, our medical school faculty became increasingly concerned about the poor levels of student attendance and professionalism [1]. Thus, lectures became diligently monitored by assigned staff, which has drastically improved cohort attendance but at the cost of the cohort's morale.…”

“…In the article by Emahiser et al, active learning modalities had higher satisfaction rates among medical students over traditional lecture-based learning [1]. Peninsula Medical School has moved away from didactic teaching, adopting a type of active learning modality called problem-based learning (PBL).…”

Neurology Education in 2035

“…21 For many learners, the process of dissemination of information has moved online. [22][23][24] There is an increasing awareness of the parallel curriculum involving self-directed and asynchronous learning opportunities so that learners engage with learning resources at times that are optimal for them. 25 More attention is being paid to learner-centered pedagogic strategies, including self-paced learning, chunking and bridging (breaking material into manageable segments and providing links between lessons), cognitive load theory (focusing on the difficulty of a learning task for an individual learner), and retrieval practice (repeated retrieval of knowledge as a way to enhance consolidation and transfer).…”