Student perceptions of undergraduate teachers

Abstract

Context and setting From 2003/2004 delivery of clinical teaching at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne was devolved to 4 geographical base units within the region. The third year covers introductory clinical skills teaching as well as rotations in chronic illness, child and reproductive health, infectious diseases, public health and mental health. The Wear Base Unit (WBU) covers an area south and east of Newcastle upon Tyne encompassing the districts of Durham, Sunderland and South Tyneside. Teaching is delivered from 3 acute hospital trusts, 2 mental health trusts and primary care. The curriculum is outcome based with common learning objectives permitting some local variation in detail and delivery of the course. Why the idea was necessary In the WBU, a fundamental principle of course design involved delivery using a multidisciplinary team encompassing senior medical staff, medical (registrar) and nursing (registered general nurses) teaching fellows, a senior clinical nurse lecturer and self-directed and group learning supported by expert patients and actors. Why the idea was necessary To seek the pre-course views of the students, as to which teachers/methods they felt could best deliver various aspects of the curriculum in order to assist planning of teaching sessions, and to review their experiences at the end of the course to determine whether expectations were met and to inform planning of the curriculum for the next academic year. What was done Before the start of the third year the students were asked to complete a questionnaire that asked which teachers/methods (7 categories) they felt had the most relevant skills/knowledge to deliver teaching in 10 clinical and non-clinical areas. Students could indicate more than 1 teaching group for each category should they feel it appropriate. A follow-up questionnaire was sent out to students at the end of the third year, asking them to identify (based upon their own personal experiences) which of the teachers/methods had the most relevant skills/knowledge in each of the 10 areas. A free text-box was inserted for additional comments. Evaluation of results and impact Initially, few students predicted that nurse teachers would have an important role teaching clinical skills other than teaching communication skills. The use of actors/expert patients and self-directed/peer group study was similarly not thought to be of major relevance. At the end of the course, the total numbers of teacher groups/methods identified as having delivered effective teaching in each area had increased, indicating that the students felt that the breadth of resources was important. There were also significant increases in the scores for nurse teachers and medical teaching fellows. The results indicate that while students may initially harbour traditional views that only consultants can teach clinical skills, a successful multidisciplinary approach to teaching can significantly modify this. There was clear recognition and acceptance of nurse teachers in the early stages of clinical undergraduate programmes. Furthermore, the value of having clinical teaching staff with a fixed teaching remit was evident. The results of the study were useful to inform detailed planning of rotations and allocation of teaching resources.