Teaching physiology to medical students in the COVID-19 era with synchronous formative assessments utilising simultaneous, combined Zoom and Socrative platforms

Volume 6, Issue 1, February 2021     |     PP. 12-32      |     PDF (573 K)    |     Pub. Date: January 31, 2021
DOI: 10.54647/education88192    172 Downloads     6205 Views  

Author(s)

Mohammed H. Abdulla, Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
Elizabeth Brint, Department of Pathology, Cork University Hospital, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
Mark G. Rae, Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

Abstract
Background: The continuing COVID-19 crisis of 2020 demanded a sudden and massive shift within academia from face-to-face learning to online and remote learning for both teaching and assessment.
Methods: Herein, we describe our own experience of this transition and, more specifically, of using the web-based Zoom video conferencing platform in conjunction with the cloud-based student response system, Socrative, to deliver synchronous physiology formative assessments/tutorials to first-year medical students.
Results: Of the 65% (n=55) of students in the class that responded to an end of module survey on the assessments, 96% (53 students) indicated that they had joined at least one of the four Zoom/Socrative quiz sessions, with 65% attending all four. The vast majority of respondents (82%) indicated that the sessions were effective in facilitating their learning. Based upon comments submitted for the survey, students liked the Zoom/Socrative assessments primarily because they provided an efficient and uncomplicated way of both communicating remotely, but still ‘face-to-face’, with their instructors, and allowed them to assess their knowledge of asynchronously-delivered, pre-recorded physiology material.
Conclusions: In summary, this study presents a feasible means of delivering real-time, synchronous physiology teaching and assessment in this era of enforced social distancing and remote learning.

Keywords
formative assessment; Socrative; Zoom; remote learning; pre-recorded lectures

Cite this paper
Mohammed H. Abdulla, Elizabeth Brint, Mark G. Rae, Teaching physiology to medical students in the COVID-19 era with synchronous formative assessments utilising simultaneous, combined Zoom and Socrative platforms , SCIREA Journal of Education. Volume 6, Issue 1, February 2021 | PP. 12-32. 10.54647/education88192

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