Transcript Document

PORTFOLIO AS A LEARNING TOOL
FOR MEDICAL STUDENTS
Kirsti Lonka, Ph.D.,
Professor of Medical Education,
Centre for Cognition, Understanding, and
Learning (CUL)
Department of LIME
Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
THE CUL VISION
• ”Best Evidence Medical
Education”- Practices should
be based on best possible
evidence and innovative
thinking.
SOME KEY ACTIVITIES OF CUL
• Starting research groups
• Faculty development of the teachers of
Karolinska Institutet
• KAROLINSKA INSTITUTET PRIZE FOR
RESEACH IN MEDICAL EDUCATION
(50 000 €, 2004) NOVEMBER 3, 2004!
• International and National Research and
Development Projects
• Evaluation and assessment
• KI Learning Lab
VAD ÄR REFLEKTION?
• Att ha ett kritiskt
förhållningssätt till
sina handlingar
• Att ta emot och ge
feedback
• Att ha distans till
sig själv
• Att ifrågasätta sina
egna metoder
Integrated Competence
•
•
•
•
•
Knowledge
Skills
Ethics
Communication
Emotions
-> Expert thinking
and professional
practice
Traditional approach to assessment
in medical education?
60 %
- of what?
PROBLEM IN MEDICAL EDUCATION?
• Too much action, not enough
reflection!
• Overwhelming experiences that are
never processed
• Reflective practice calls for possibilities
for systematically learning from the
experience
TWO AIMS OF ASSESSMENT
(that may disturb each other)
• TO SUPPORT
LEARNING
• self-assessment
• students’ own
development
• motivation for lifelong learning
• are the central goals
being met?
• formative
• TO CONTROL THE
OUTCOMES
• grading, scoring
• performance,
competing
• to please the
teacher, to continue
studies
• what are the criteria
for passing?
• summative
WRITING SHAPES THINKING
Research shows that writing is a powerfool tool
for enhancing learning
•
The act of writing is an aid to students’ learning,
a tool to be used in acquiring mastery over new
information, and a means of revealing present
understanding of a given subject
• Properly implemented writing activities are
effective in fostering good writing, and also
encouraging more reasoned and disciplined
thinking about the topics themselves.
P.Tynjälä, L. Mason, & K. Lonka (Eds.) Writing as a
Learning Tool: Integrating theory and practice. Studies
in Writing, Vol. 7. Dordrecth, The Netherlands: Kluwer
Academic Publishers.
WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT EFFECTIVE
STUDY STRATEGIES?
In Learning-from-text tests:
• Only copying information is not efficient
• Writing by own words or constructing
visual maps enhances learning from text –
especially when problem solving is called for
• Students who only read texts without any
note taking activity were the least successful
in any kinds of tasks
• (Lonka et al, 1994, Slotte & Lonka, 1999ab;
2001ab)
WHAT IS A PORTFOLIO?
• PRODUCT: ”A collection of products of
student work showing student
reflection and progress or achievement
over time in one or more areas”
(Bryant & Timmins, 2002)
• PROCESS: Using writing as a tool for
reflection and systematic analysis of
learning
WHY TO USE
LEARNING PORTFOLIOS?
- to support and clarify professional development
- helps to make the learning goals clear and to
follow how they are achieved
- an aid to students’ learning and knowledge
- an aid for constant self-reflection and selfassessment
- to support the learning process rather than
control the learning outcomes
- reveals the strengths and weaknesses of training,
and helps developing better ways of learning
CURRENT TRENDS IN ASSESSMENT
•
•
•
•
•
•
BEFORE
book exams
indirect criteria
competing, product
reproduction
evaluating one
course at a time
• concentrating on
present state
• NOW
• course work,
projects, portfolios
• cooperation,
processes
• competencies, skills
• holistic evaluation
• previous and future
potential looked at
Lonka, K. Slotte, V., Halttunen, M., Kurki, T., Tiitinen, A. Vaara,
L. & Paavonen, J. (2001) Portfolios as a learning tool in
obstetrics and gynaecology undergraduate training.
Medical Education, 35, 1125-1130.
• A special structured portfolio booklet for medical
students in gynaecology training .
• Objectives:
1 ) to support the learning process of the students.
2 ) to get information for enhancing the quality of
teaching
• 91 medical students who completed the portfolio
during gynaecology training course.
RESULTS
(Lonka et al, 2001)
• The amount of text written in the portfolios
correlated with success in a final exam
• Using portfolio enhanced the learning process
during the course
• Portfolios also acted as learning logs, where
students could report all procedures they
carried out
• Students appreciated the departmental
interest in their development and feedback
The amount
of text in a
portfolio
Mean
S.D.
Not much
16
65,80
9,31
In average
30
69,79
11,27
Much
37
77,16
10,95
Total
* = p< 0.001.
N
83
72,12
11,49
Fvalue
4.17*
WHY NOT USE PORTFOLIOS?
Using portfolios
• challenges our traditional ways of thinking
about teaching, learning and assessment
• call for changing the learning culture for both
teachers and students
• Require team work and collaboration among
academic and hospital staff
• Provide fundamentally new kinds of
knowledge about our students’ thinking and
development – they are not stupid after all!