Peer Education Teaching Programme at WMS

The practice of near-peer teaching, or peer-assisted learning, within medical schools is well documented, as are the benefits thereof, although the long-term effects are poorly understood (Topping, 1996; Pasquinelli and Greenberg, 2008; Yu et al., 2011). A large number of medical students at Warwick Medical School (WMS) engage in near-peer teaching throughout their studies. The benefits to those students who attend near-peer teaching sessions include an environment where they are more likely to disclose ignorance or confusion about a topic and can then have it explained and corrected, as well as an introduction to students who can not only clarify what lies ahead of them and decrease related anxiety, but also build their confidence and act as role models (Topping, 2005; Lockspeiser et al., 2008). The peer-teaching sessions furthermore are an environment in which the ‘hidden curriculum’, described by Ten Cate and Durning (2007) as the ‘set of unwritten rules that must be followed to ‘survive’ the programme’, is largely transmitted.

The 3-level certificate aims to give those students who teach, or are interested in teaching, an opportunity to further develop and enhance their skills. It also aims to provide some guidance from the medical school on improving the students conceptual knowledge of ‘teaching’ and how students learn (through reflection on their methods, an advanced understanding etc.), and to provide them with the tools to present well-crafted, engaging and informative teaching sessions. Furthermore, considering near-peer teachers are not experts in the content they will be teaching, they will not always know the answer to their students questions – as such, the programme will not only encourage student teachers to review course content to limit gaps in their knowledge, but encourage them to answer “I don’t know” instead of giving an incorrect response (Ross and Cameron, 2007). This will help students more critically appraise their own knowledge and prevent confusion amongst their students about the subject matter.

There are currently several medical schools that teach their students how to teach, however no standardised programme exists (Pasquinelli and Greenberg, 2008; Burgess and McGregor, 2018). The proposed course structure is therefore based on the literature surrounding near-peer teaching, as well as student interest and what was felt would best support student teachers at WMS. Rana et al.'s 2017 consensus study guided the inclusion of teaching areas such as feedback, small-group teaching, bedside teaching and case-based teaching in the proposed curriculum. Where similar teaching programmes exist, these have been reviewed and those aspects most applicable to the student experience at Warwick Medical School have been incorporated. Fundamentally, the proposed structure is open for adaptation and can be altered and changed in response to staff, student, and near-peer teacher feedback.

It is currently not intended as a mandatory programme for all student teachers, but a recommended one. Students will not receive academic credit for their teaching or participation in the near-peer teaching programs in existence at Warwick Medical School as they are solely a voluntary experience. Currently there are no set prerequisite grades or academic achievements in place for applying to the different peer teaching groups. This is due to student teachers often holding a supportive role for their students, which means there is considered to be some value in involving those who have had first-hand experience in struggling with and then mastering the course content (Wadoodi and Crosby, 2002). An understanding of the expected work and time commitment involved is however mandatory.

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Certification Levels

The course is structured over 3 levels, with students encouraged to enter at the foundation stage.

Assessment across all stages includes an attendance requirement. Considering efforts have been made to keep the programme concise, it is expected that students who cannot attend a session (due to illness etc.) attempt to remediate the missed session by either attending the missed session the next time it is run, or by meeting with a fellow student to discuss the areas covered. Session leads will also be asked to be available for follow-up queries.

References

Burgess, A. and McGregor, D. (2018) ‘Peer teacher training for health professional students: a systematic review of formal programs’, BMC medical education. BioMed Central, 18(1), p. 263. doi: 10.1186/s12909018-1356-2.

Ten Cate, O. and Durning, S. (2007) ‘Dimensions and psychology of peer teaching in medical education’, Medical Teacher. Taylor & Francis, 29(6), pp. 546–552. doi: 10.1080/01421590701583816.

Lockspeiser, T. M. et al. (2008) ‘Understanding the experience of being taught by peers: the value of social and cognitive congruence’, Advances in Health Sciences Education, 13(3), pp. 361–372. doi: 10.1007/s10459006-9049-8.

Pasquinelli, L. and Greenberg, L. (2008) ‘A Review of Medical School Programs That Train Medical Students as Teachers (MED-SATS)’, Teaching and Learning in Medicine. Routledge, 20(1), pp. 73–81. doi:

10.1080/10401330701798337.

Rana, J. et al. (2018) ‘Defining curricular priorities for student-as-teacher programs: A National Delphi Study’, Medical Teacher. Taylor & Francis, 40(3), pp. 259–266. doi: 10.1080/0142159X.2017.1401216.

Ross, M. T. and Cameron, H. S. (2007) ‘Peer assisted learning: a planning and implementation framework:

AMEE Guide no. 30’, Medical Teacher. Taylor & Francis, 29(6), pp. 527–545. doi:

10.1080/01421590701665886.

Topping, K. J. (1996) ‘The effectiveness of peer tutoring in further and higher education: A typology and review of the literature’, Higher Education, 32(3), pp. 321–345. doi: 10.1007/BF00138870.

Topping, K. J. (2005) ‘Trends in Peer Learning’, Educational Psychology. Routledge, 25(6), pp. 631–645. doi:

10.1080/01443410500345172.

Wadoodi, A. and Crosby, J. R. (2002) ‘Twelve tips for peer-assisted learning: a classic concept revisited’, Medical Teacher. Taylor & Francis, 24(3), pp. 241–244. doi: 10.1080/01421590220134060.

Yu, T.-C. et al. (2011) ‘Medical students-as-teachers: a systematic review of peer-assisted teaching during medical school’, Advances in medical education and practice. Dove Medical Press, 2, pp. 157–172. doi:

10.2147/AMEP.S14383.