CYCLE TWO - REHEARSING
Research Question
If I implement the wiki this semester, will it increase the students’ understanding of the concepts being presented in the Medically Compromised Patient class?
During cycle one, the student survey revealed that 36% percent of the students did not feel that the discussion board strengthened their understanding and felt it was repetitive. For cycle two, I implemented the wiki to allow the students to continue to build knowledge together and increase their understanding of the concepts being discussed using a different format. Assessment of this activity was based on a minimum weekly contribution. Students put their names after each of their entries, which made it easier to verify.
If I implement the wiki this semester, will it increase the students’ understanding of the concepts being presented in the Medically Compromised Patient class?
During cycle one, the student survey revealed that 36% percent of the students did not feel that the discussion board strengthened their understanding and felt it was repetitive. For cycle two, I implemented the wiki to allow the students to continue to build knowledge together and increase their understanding of the concepts being discussed using a different format. Assessment of this activity was based on a minimum weekly contribution. Students put their names after each of their entries, which made it easier to verify.
Action
The students were introduced to the wiki the first day of class and I explained its purpose. Participation was high from its inception. At the end of the course, the students again were asked to complete a survey to obtain their opinions on the use of the wiki and how it allowed them to strengthen their understanding.
A wiki home page was created and served as a table of contents that included an introduction to the wiki, its purpose and links to a series of 29 pages for specific topics. Each page represented a chapter and the medical problem discussed in that chapter. I provided an outline, which covered the learning outcomes, for the students to fill-in that included the following:
At the end of the page after the students’ post, I had case scenarios to allow the students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts. Students were provided with guidance on the basic concepts that should be covered in their posts and were encouraged to research each medical condition from multiple resources and to include videos and pictures to help one another with understanding. They were also encouraged to post questions if they needed clarification on specific areas. Students were assessed individually rather than as a group, and by demonstrating their knowledge of the content.
Evaluations
The students were required to read the assigned chapter(s) and display their knowledge on the wiki weekly before the start of class. This allowed the students to come to class with a basic knowledge of the material and during lecture we could expand on what they had learned. This is not what occurred and class participation was minimal. The information the students presented on the wiki was accurate and complete. The students posted detailed pictures and informative videos but I did not see this knowledge or understanding demonstrated during class. When I began researching why there was a disconnect between the wiki and class participation I learned that the students were taking short cuts. Most of the students were not reading the assigned chapters and just going to the textbook to answer a specific section of the topic we were studying.
This semester the students began seeing patients in clinic. One student had a patient that had been exposed to Hepatitis B and the student stated she didn’t know anything about hepatitis B despite having a wiki page completely filled out on Hepatitis. This means that the student(s) weren’t reading the wiki to be able to apply what they have learned into clinic.
It was time to switch things up. I had originally put up an outline on the wiki pages to guide the students in synthesizing the information presented. I informed the students in class that they would be responsible for deciding the important concepts for the remaining chapters and I sent the following e-mail to the class:
Hi Class of 2013,
This week in class we are going to switch things up. I will be posting the lecture notes after class. I will not be lecturing. By Friday's class, you all have already read the chapters and posted to your wiki. So class will consist of you displaying your knowledge and understanding of the material. Be prepared to answer questions individually on the concepts such as the definition, signs and symptoms, the etiology, medical and dental management, and treatment planning. There are four chapters. This will be fun and I will be there as a guide to help you along the way.
In the first two weeks the students did well covering all the important concepts but the level of knowledge decreased on the remainder of the chapters. I would post questions to encourage the students to critically think about the concepts that they were missing. I found that the students did not go back to a page once the topic moved forward.
Evidence
At the conclusion of DEH-26 The Medically Compromised Patient, the students were sent a seven question survey via e-mail. The response rate was 82%, with 9 of 11 students returning their survey via e-mail. The following represents the results of the student survey and additional comments.
Question #1: Has the use of the wiki in The Medically Compromised Patient allowed you to expand your knowledge on each of the assigned chapters?
The students were introduced to the wiki the first day of class and I explained its purpose. Participation was high from its inception. At the end of the course, the students again were asked to complete a survey to obtain their opinions on the use of the wiki and how it allowed them to strengthen their understanding.
A wiki home page was created and served as a table of contents that included an introduction to the wiki, its purpose and links to a series of 29 pages for specific topics. Each page represented a chapter and the medical problem discussed in that chapter. I provided an outline, which covered the learning outcomes, for the students to fill-in that included the following:
- Definition of the disease
- Incidence and Prevalence
- Etiology
- Pathophysiology and Complications
- Signs and Symptoms
- Laboratory Findings
- Medical Management
- Dental Management
- Treatment Planning Considerations
- Oral Manifestations
At the end of the page after the students’ post, I had case scenarios to allow the students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts. Students were provided with guidance on the basic concepts that should be covered in their posts and were encouraged to research each medical condition from multiple resources and to include videos and pictures to help one another with understanding. They were also encouraged to post questions if they needed clarification on specific areas. Students were assessed individually rather than as a group, and by demonstrating their knowledge of the content.
Evaluations
The students were required to read the assigned chapter(s) and display their knowledge on the wiki weekly before the start of class. This allowed the students to come to class with a basic knowledge of the material and during lecture we could expand on what they had learned. This is not what occurred and class participation was minimal. The information the students presented on the wiki was accurate and complete. The students posted detailed pictures and informative videos but I did not see this knowledge or understanding demonstrated during class. When I began researching why there was a disconnect between the wiki and class participation I learned that the students were taking short cuts. Most of the students were not reading the assigned chapters and just going to the textbook to answer a specific section of the topic we were studying.
This semester the students began seeing patients in clinic. One student had a patient that had been exposed to Hepatitis B and the student stated she didn’t know anything about hepatitis B despite having a wiki page completely filled out on Hepatitis. This means that the student(s) weren’t reading the wiki to be able to apply what they have learned into clinic.
It was time to switch things up. I had originally put up an outline on the wiki pages to guide the students in synthesizing the information presented. I informed the students in class that they would be responsible for deciding the important concepts for the remaining chapters and I sent the following e-mail to the class:
Hi Class of 2013,
This week in class we are going to switch things up. I will be posting the lecture notes after class. I will not be lecturing. By Friday's class, you all have already read the chapters and posted to your wiki. So class will consist of you displaying your knowledge and understanding of the material. Be prepared to answer questions individually on the concepts such as the definition, signs and symptoms, the etiology, medical and dental management, and treatment planning. There are four chapters. This will be fun and I will be there as a guide to help you along the way.
In the first two weeks the students did well covering all the important concepts but the level of knowledge decreased on the remainder of the chapters. I would post questions to encourage the students to critically think about the concepts that they were missing. I found that the students did not go back to a page once the topic moved forward.
Evidence
At the conclusion of DEH-26 The Medically Compromised Patient, the students were sent a seven question survey via e-mail. The response rate was 82%, with 9 of 11 students returning their survey via e-mail. The following represents the results of the student survey and additional comments.
Question #1: Has the use of the wiki in The Medically Compromised Patient allowed you to expand your knowledge on each of the assigned chapters?
Question #2: Do you feel your work on the wiki allowed you to strengthen your understanding of the chapter before discussing the information in class?
Additional student comments on the use of the wiki:
Each student’s submission was retrieved at the completion of the semester. The students posted their name after each posting (including embedded images, animation and video). Eleven students (100%) participated on the wiki. The students created 29 pages of content during 593 editing sessions. Just over half of all edits (56%) involved changes to six or more sentences of text. The degree to which students contributed to the wiki varied considerably, with a relatively small number of students (18%) contributing most of the wiki content.
- I believe that reading before contributing to the wiki has allowed me to process the information that was in the textbook and has allowed a better understanding of the information. I have been using the wiki as a study guide and it has helped tremendously.
- The wiki has allowed me to see topics of discussion from different points of view.
- I think placing pictures were really helpful because it gives you more visual aids so you are not fixed on the ones in the book.
- I enjoyed the wiki. I think I would have gotten more out of it if there were a certain student assigned to each chapter or two people assigned to each chapter.
Each student’s submission was retrieved at the completion of the semester. The students posted their name after each posting (including embedded images, animation and video). Eleven students (100%) participated on the wiki. The students created 29 pages of content during 593 editing sessions. Just over half of all edits (56%) involved changes to six or more sentences of text. The degree to which students contributed to the wiki varied considerably, with a relatively small number of students (18%) contributing most of the wiki content.
Fig. 3: Proportional contribution of text (based on word counts) of the highest and least productive students.
Fig. 4 Wiki Visitors
Fig. 5 Edits made to the wiki
I took the last six years (2006-2011) final exam scores from previous classes and compared them to this year’s class to see if the implementation of the wiki improved scores. The final exam included multiple-choice questions and several case scenarios that required the students to demonstrate their knowledge by short answer essays.
I took the last six years (2006-2011) final exam scores from previous classes and compared them to this year’s class to see if the implementation of the wiki improved scores. The final exam included multiple-choice questions and several case scenarios that required the students to demonstrate their knowledge by short answer essays.
The chart revealed that there has been an improvement in test scores the last two years. I started teaching the Medically Compromised Patient in the spring of 2011. Comparing the last two years of the classes I taught showed the current class grades had dropped. I don’t think the drop in scores represented the implementation of the wiki. I believe the drop in scores can be attributed to the type of learners present in each class. The spring of 2011 students were highly motivated students who actively participated and were engaged in their learning. The spring of 2012 students had five students (45%) who were not actively engaged in their learning. The director sent this e-mail with the survey attached for cycle III but it summarizes these five students accurately.
Hi Debbie,
Here is my survey. I'm fearful that if we are all honest, your results reflect that your project wasn't successful. If we take Nicole, Anurag, Chris, Kenley and Debbie out of the equation - your results would be amazing. These students just don't have the desire to truly learn, process and then incorporate the knowledge into patient care. They just want to get by and say and do the craziest things.
Reflection
During cycle two, I was interested in assessing the degree to which students behaved cooperatively and collaboratively in using the wiki to increase their knowledge and understanding of the material presented in class. I wanted to explore the potential of using the wiki and, in doing so, identified prospective deficiencies in both my learning design and the students’ use of wikis.
This was the first time I have used the wiki in my classroom. Wikis are widely promoted as collaborative tools, yet their success or failure strongly depends on the way in which they are designed and how well the students follow the design. Being mindful of such issues when designing the wiki, there was an expectation on my part that students would engage in cooperative and collaborative behavior. Initially, it seemed that my expectations were being met, however, class discussions, or the lack of, painted a very different picture.
All of the students participated on the wiki but the analysis of the equity of students’ contributions suggests that many of the students were probably more concerned with simply meeting the weekly requirement, which would require minimal cooperation and collaboration, than developing a deeper understanding of the material and establishing a collaborative relationship with the class. The students were to post by Tuesday and collaborate back and forth before Friday’s class. The timing of the students’ contributions also revealed a great deal about their willingness to collaborate with other members of their class. I found that once the student made their contribution they did not go back to the wiki again until the next post was due. I also noted that the students’ did not comment on one another’s work and my attempts to engage the students resulted in them answering the question but they did not elaborate on the subject.
I became frustrated with the lack of class participation and changed things up again by posting the lectures after class. I informed the students that I would be calling on each of them to share their knowledge. By the end of the semester I was finally getting somewhere, the students were engaged and demonstrated how the information we were studying would apply when treating a patient.
A key area where the wiki could have been improved, thereby encouraging more meaningful contributions and collaborative activity on the part of the students, is in my design and the assessment. Biggs (1996) stated that assessments drive student engagement with learning and the constructive alignment recognizes the need to have the learning objectives, its instructional design and assessment integrated closely.
With each cycle of research I am learning more about my teaching practice and myself. Almost half of the eleven students are not able to transfer their knowledge. How do I help students (45%) who are using memorization to embrace the process of learning so they can transfer their knowledge into clinic. When analyzing the data, one could feel discouraged that every student wasn’t successful in the transference of knowledge when in clinic, but I had to also look at the successes of what I implemented; 55% of the students displayed a depth of knowledge not seen in first year students (director’s comments). I think the implementation of the wiki was successful for the student who was motivated to learn. I need to make adjustments to the wiki and other class activities to help motivate those students who only want to do the minimum to get by.
Hi Debbie,
Here is my survey. I'm fearful that if we are all honest, your results reflect that your project wasn't successful. If we take Nicole, Anurag, Chris, Kenley and Debbie out of the equation - your results would be amazing. These students just don't have the desire to truly learn, process and then incorporate the knowledge into patient care. They just want to get by and say and do the craziest things.
Reflection
During cycle two, I was interested in assessing the degree to which students behaved cooperatively and collaboratively in using the wiki to increase their knowledge and understanding of the material presented in class. I wanted to explore the potential of using the wiki and, in doing so, identified prospective deficiencies in both my learning design and the students’ use of wikis.
This was the first time I have used the wiki in my classroom. Wikis are widely promoted as collaborative tools, yet their success or failure strongly depends on the way in which they are designed and how well the students follow the design. Being mindful of such issues when designing the wiki, there was an expectation on my part that students would engage in cooperative and collaborative behavior. Initially, it seemed that my expectations were being met, however, class discussions, or the lack of, painted a very different picture.
All of the students participated on the wiki but the analysis of the equity of students’ contributions suggests that many of the students were probably more concerned with simply meeting the weekly requirement, which would require minimal cooperation and collaboration, than developing a deeper understanding of the material and establishing a collaborative relationship with the class. The students were to post by Tuesday and collaborate back and forth before Friday’s class. The timing of the students’ contributions also revealed a great deal about their willingness to collaborate with other members of their class. I found that once the student made their contribution they did not go back to the wiki again until the next post was due. I also noted that the students’ did not comment on one another’s work and my attempts to engage the students resulted in them answering the question but they did not elaborate on the subject.
I became frustrated with the lack of class participation and changed things up again by posting the lectures after class. I informed the students that I would be calling on each of them to share their knowledge. By the end of the semester I was finally getting somewhere, the students were engaged and demonstrated how the information we were studying would apply when treating a patient.
A key area where the wiki could have been improved, thereby encouraging more meaningful contributions and collaborative activity on the part of the students, is in my design and the assessment. Biggs (1996) stated that assessments drive student engagement with learning and the constructive alignment recognizes the need to have the learning objectives, its instructional design and assessment integrated closely.
With each cycle of research I am learning more about my teaching practice and myself. Almost half of the eleven students are not able to transfer their knowledge. How do I help students (45%) who are using memorization to embrace the process of learning so they can transfer their knowledge into clinic. When analyzing the data, one could feel discouraged that every student wasn’t successful in the transference of knowledge when in clinic, but I had to also look at the successes of what I implemented; 55% of the students displayed a depth of knowledge not seen in first year students (director’s comments). I think the implementation of the wiki was successful for the student who was motivated to learn. I need to make adjustments to the wiki and other class activities to help motivate those students who only want to do the minimum to get by.