Dr WEE Hwee Lin

On behalf of the PR1103 team,Department of Pharmacy,Faculty of Science

INCORPORATING WEB-BASED LEARNING IN THE

TEACHING OF PHARMACEUTICAL

COMPOUNDING AND DISPENSING

Principal Investigator:

Dr WEE Hwee Lin, Assistant Professor

Co-investigators:

Miss Tan Mui Ling, Senior Lecturer

Dr Ong Pei Shi, Lecturer

Dr Wong Li Lian, Assistant Professor

Miss Yong Sock Leng, Laboratory Technologist

Co-lecturers:

A/P Chan Sui Yung, Associate Professor

Dr Yau Wai Ping, Lecturer

Web and Video Production Team:

Kenneth Gerard Pinto, Educational Technologist, CIT

Claudine Foo Lay Peng, Principal Media Producer, CIT

THE TEAM

BACKGROUND

Extemporaneous compounding and dispensing is an important skill imparted to pharmacy undergraduates from day 1 of their course

A large variety of dosage forms

Limited contact time Touch-and-go experience

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for better engagement and learning

"Teachers need to integrate technology seamlessly into the curriculum instead of viewing it as an add-on, an afterthought, or an event" ~ Heidi-Hayes Jacobs

Image from apple.com

To develop a web-based platform for delivering teaching materials, which students can access anytime, anywhere

Hypothesis: Learning outcomes will be equivalent between web-based and

in-person teaching

OBJECTIVES

STUDY DESIGN – CROSS OVER TRIAL

Groups 1 Group 2 Group 3

Video Series 1 (30 min) Live demo (20 min) View videos before practical class

Make preparation (1 hr)

Make preparation(1 hr)

Make preparation (1 hr)

Live demo (20 min) Video Series 1 (30 min) Survey / Print Labels

Video Series 2 (10 min) Video Series 2 (10 min) Submit preparation

Survey / Print Labels Survey / Print Labels

Submit preparation Submit preparation

All preparations were graded on a scale of 0 to 10 by a single lecturer using a standardized marking scheme developed by all teaching staff in the module.

Baseline Surveys administered in class

Section 1: quality of the videos, level of confidence in making the preparations just by viewing the videos, preferred place and time for viewing the videos in preparation for the weekly practical classes, preferred place and time for viewing the videos in preparation for the practical test.

Section 2: completed by students in Groups 1 and 2 only. Quality of the live demonstration, level of confidence in making the preparations just by viewing the live demonstration.

Section 3: Preferred to have the videos only, live demonstration only or both video and live demonstration.

Two open-ended questions for students to provide additional feedback on the videos and live demonstrations, respectively.

STUDY DESIGN

6-week follow up survey administered through IVLE

Section 1: Experience with accessing the course website, whether they encountered any problems and whether they received timely help if they did, the average frequency of accessing the course website prior to class, when and how (type of device) they accessed the course website, and whether the instructions that were uploaded onto IVLE before each practical class were timely and appropriate.

Section 2: Whether the online information were sufficient, whether a briefing before the beginning of each practical class was necessary, whether they preferred small group debrief or big group debrief.

STUDY DESIGN

INFORMED CONSENT

I have been given an explanation of the purpose of this study and consent to take part in this study.

I am aware that if I refuse to take part in this study, my grades for this and other modules will not be affected in any way.

Matriculation No.: __________________

Signature: _________________________

http://courseware.nus.edu.sg/pharmacy-practice/

Items to View

Series 1

Weighing using the electronic weighing balance 

Geometric mixing of powders  

Pestle and Mortar mixing of powders

Spatula mixing of powders

Calculations for capsule

Correct technique of filling capsules from glass slab

Series 2

Printing label

Pasting labels on containers containing capsules

RESULTS – QUALITY OF PREPARATION

Same median score of 9 for all groups; wider distribution for Group 3

210 students participated (response rate: 100%) 60.5% female

Previous exposure to IT-based active learning and self-evaluated IT savviness is similar across the three groups

A significantly lower proportion of students in Group 1 compared to the other two groups felt that the instructions were very clear (p=0.002).

RESULTS - BASELINE SURVEY

29.6%

58.0%

51.4%

Instructions were very clear

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

A significantly lower proportion of students in Group 1 compared to the other two groups felt that the instructions were complete (p=0.002).

No statistically significant differences for the following: Got a very clear view of the various steps involved in making the

preparation

Felt quite confident to make the preparations just by viewing the videos

RESULTS - BASELINE SURVEY

63.4%

87.0%

80.0%

Instructions were complete

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

For the purpose of completing the weekly practical assignments 60% preferred online anytime viewing of videos

17% preferred online anytime and in the laboratory, just before class

For the purpose of preparing for the practical test 76% preferred online anytime viewing of videos

17% preferred online anytime and in the laboratory, a day before the test

RESULTS - BASELINE SURVEY

Students overwhelmingly indicated that they would like both videos and live demonstration (86.4%) and the responses were similar between the two groups

RESULTS - BASELINE SURVEY

“Still prefer having live demonstrations at the start of each practical. There’s something about being able to ask questions to clarify and communicate with the Profs that is sorely lacking in videos. Then again the videos were a good way to provide fundamental skills and knowledge such as geometric mixing, hence I feel that a combination of both would provide a much more effective platform for students to learn. Both help in different ways and synergizes with each other. I really appreciate the time the faculty spent on the videos though! Thank you!”

RESULTS – STUDENT FEEDBACK

All staff enjoyed conducting the live demonstration.

Even though few students actually asked questions during the demonstration, they felt that they were able to dish out more advice to the students through live demonstration.

Furthermore, the staff also observed that they had to intervene less frequently to correct wrong techniques among students in Group 2 who viewed the live demonstration first compared to students in Groups 1 and 3.

RESULTS – STAFF FEEDBACK

70 students participated (response rate: 30%)

Majority of students accessed the course website using a Windows laptop (47.1%) or Windows desktop (22.8%). Only 5 students (7.0%) assessed the course website using a tablet or smartphone. The rest (19.9%) used either a Macintosh desktop or laptop.

Majority of students (62.8%) did not have problem accessing the course website. Among those who did, 12.8% received timely resolution to their problem most of the time.

50% of students viewed the videos twice before coming to class and 50% of students viewed the videos on the day before class.

RESULTS – FOLLOW-UP SURVEY

Majority of students (62.8%) moderately agreed that the preparatory information which were uploaded onto IVLE before each practical class were sufficient to help them prepare for the class with 90% stating that the materials were uploaded on time.

57.1% of students felt that the briefings conducted before the start of the practical class were necessary as they highlighted things that were not covered in the courseware website while 37.1% felt that the briefings were useful because they helped students recall the important points covered in the courseware website.

RESULTS – FOLLOW-UP SURVEY

68.5% of students preferred a small group debrief compared to 20% of students who preferred large group debrief.

One student commented that “Both were helpful. The small group debrief would be more interactive and personalized, while the big group debrief ensured a holistic look on the common mistakes made.”

Another student commented that “Small class debrief has varied results as some Profs highlight more/different things, hence there's the feeling of having missed out some point which might be important. I would hence prefer big class debrief.”

RESULTS – FOLLOW-UP SURVEY

Devote plenty of time to planning

Prepare the video scripts with extreme care and provide the minutest details Remember that the video crew has no clue about the preparations/

experiments

Facilitates re-shoot to ensure that the procedures were repeated in the exact manner.

Identify in advance a suitable time to carry out the filming Book venue and video crew

Blackout periods: Commencement, Lessons, Exams, etc

Test, test again and test again and again on multiple platforms

LEARNING POINTS

Incorporating web-based learning provided an opportunity for ICT-based blended learning in the area of pharmaceutical compounding and dispensing

CONCLUSIONS

Dr Adrian Michael Lee, Department of Chemistry, for sharing his experience in setting up a similar courseware website

Pharmacy undergraduates who participated in the survey

Graduate talents

Video crew

CDTL Teaching Enhancement Grant

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT