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Abstract
Excellent teaching is one that triggers excellent learning. It helps learners to acquire the required knowledge content, the ability to apply the knowledge to standard and novel types of problems and situations which may not have been encountered in the textbooks as well as the ability to learn and think independently. This includes the ability to discover/construct knowledge and critically evaluate what is regarded as knowledge. There is increasing awareness among educators and educational researchers of the necessity to modify current educational practices in view of the failure of traditional education to achieve its goals and the great societal changes currently taking place.
Lecturing or large group teaching is one of the oldest forms of teaching. It has been the dominant instructional technique in virtually all sectors of formal education throughout recorded history. Lectures are an efficient means of transferring knowledge and concepts to large groups. However, they should not be regarded as an effective way of teaching skills, changing attitudes or encouraging higher order thinking. As university education moves from the old paradigm (model) of teaching to the new paradigm of learning, the role of large group lectures must make a necessary adaptation by making lectures more interactive. Active participation and involvement is a prerequisite for learning beyond the recall of facts, it increases attention and motivation, promotes a higher level of thinking and provides feedback to the teacher and the student. This can be achieved via incorporation of various active learning techniques e.g. small group learning methods, which have many advantages. The most important advantage is the ability of the small group to foster active and collaborative learning. These two characteristics are very important components in student -centered learning approaches.
The present study aimed to gain insight into the process of knowledge acquisition among fourth year medical students in Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University. Specific objectives included comparing the effects of different applied teaching methods on the acquisition of knowledge at its different levels among medical undergraduates, identifying different learning approaches adopted by medical undergraduates, portraying students-related factors governing their academic performance and evaluating different teaching methods from students’ perspective. In addition, the present study aimed to reveal the knowledge, attitudes and practices of staff members concerning different teaching methods and their applicability within the faculty context.To accomplish these aims, a study using single-blinded, randomized controlled intervention and a descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted at the Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University. The target population consisted of all fourth year medical students registered in the academic year 2007-2008 during their rotation in the Community Medicine Department, and a convenience sample of the faculty staff members of different faculty departments. An official approval for conducting the study was obtained from the vice deans of post-graduate research and that of students affairs, ethics committee, and the Head of the Community Medicine Department where the study was conducted.