One of my colleagues in the department of Anatomy has developed a software package, Riddel to set up and design Anatomy tests. Riddel has evolved many times and up to a
point where it is also used now in other departments and also constitutes an
essential form of assessment in the Department of Anatomy.
I’ve also made use of Riddel during the Introductory Course at the commencement of the academic year of the BCur and
BSLPA first years. Initially it was an
introduction test after a range of introductory lectures. But now the aim is to design this e-Learning
Intervention (e-LI) where instead of the lectures, students learn interactively, as
well as being assessed afterwards.
Design and Development
The aim needs to be clear. The aim of this eLI (e-Learning Intervention) is to is to get all students to understand the basic anatomical terminology, the very basics of the vascular, nervous and musculoskeletal systems to form a good foundation on which they can build on the rest of the year. The e-LI will be designed and developed to reach all the objectives of the Introductory module. The very reason I'm investigating an introductory course is that I've made the mistake... Starting with a bang with the first module of their Anatomy course and they don't know what is the difference between an artery and a vein or a nerve. It is important for students to be on the same page and much easier for the lecturer if there is a foundation (knowing what they know) to work from.
The introductory course consists of a few e-LI's: Anatomical Terminology; Introduction to the Cardiovascular System; Introduction to the Nervous System; Introduction to the Musculoskeletal system and an Introduction to Histology. Each time the student needs to obtain >75% to get a code to obtain access to the next test. The reason for having the students obtaining at least 75%, is because the content is simple but essential to have for building on it the rest of the year - students can't technically afford to know less than 75% of the bare basics. And as the students try and retry (compared to just writing a test and trying to pass it, or not really worrying about it), they learn more, they have to go back. As for most of the terminology as well as Anatomy as a subject in general, some surface learning is required, or at least at the start to just get momentum. When the last code is obtained and submitted, 10 marks will be allocated to give students a head start for their summative assessment. This makes this e-LI a more positive experience compared to just writing a test after the introduction lectures and obtaining a (pass or fail) mark.
Computer lab access and a universal login will be made available for the student to get access to the program during scheduled Anatomy periods. Access will also be available for students to do the e-LI in their own time. When all components are obtained the student will know the basics of terminology and the cardiovascular, nervous and musculoskeletal systems which would serve as a good foundation for the rest of the year.
The ins and outs of Riddel: It is simplistic and very usable. It has also recently been used in language subject areas for primary school children. Therefore, as described in the analysis phase, students from all backgrounds will not find it complicated. What makes Riddel a great program is that although it is a fairly easy program to use, all levels of difficulty in the content can be determined to test the students.
Resources include Textbooks, electronic Anatomy Atlases, online (web) illustrations and some of the lectures that was used in the past for the Introductory Course.
Students will receive instructions on how to use Riddel at the commencement of the Introductory module as well as a sheet with essential information and space to write down their codes and marks.
Input from other lecturers will help to check if questions and layout is up to standard and to increase the usability. The program also includes the calculation of the Difficulty Index as well as a Discrimination Index after students have written, to make the necessary changes to improve the following year's e-LI.
As Riddel was developed by my colleague the prototype as well as usability was evaluated many times and the program that it is now has evolved into a "very user friendly" program.
Processing: Althought the program Riddel was developed by our colleague; it gives us as lecturers the means of setting our own test or interventions.
Quality assurance: Riddel has developed over the years and tried and tested by several groups. Each time a test is written, or being set, new things are discussed and developed to make it more user-friendly to such a point where it is now easily incorporated as part of the formative and summative assessment methods in the dept.
Chat again soon!
Des
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff! We sometimes tend to overlook the fact that we operate from different platforms than where the students start off from - and in our eagerness to 'inform' (and sometimes to impress?) they miss the first stepping stones: basics! I used a book (this was 1982 and obviously before computer-interventions for student-learning was this easy and effective!!!) which worked in a similar way: each chosen answer would have a page referenced. If correct, the answer was discussed in short and the next question asked. If not, the student was redirected back to the relevant topic and had to redo the question ... I used the format to enter my own topics and questions ... worked well, but s..o..o.. time-consuming, both for lecturer and student! With my learners presently not having much access to computers, I'm working on a similar project - a book again. Which will be 'transfered' to higher technology.. :D .. eventually, I hope!
Good luck here!
Elna
Yes Elna, I think there is a few tried and tested methods in the non-electronic era that can be transferred to being electronically operated. The thing that really makes this easier is that should you encounter a problem with a question or memorandum after the students have written, it can be fixed/corrected through the program instead of going through each and every question paper again. The Dept of Biology has also tried this program now for assessment - they have almost 800 students for the same course in a year. This has great implications for them as well cause time spent just to mark is enourmous.
DeleteGood luck for your project!
Thanks for sharing Desire! This makes a lot of sense (although from Elna's reply it is clear that the type of learning intervention is not new). What I like is the electronic medium's affordance of automatic marking, but even more the "intelligence" to feedback difficulty index and discrimination for adaptation. Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteOne must maybe set quite a strict timeline for the students with progress markers as they should probably not do all the sections in the last day or two before the cut-off.
Nice to see your thoughts unfold before all of us!
Hi JP!
DeleteThe thing with the automatic marking is not just the time spending marking that is decreased but the fact that the chance for human error is significantly lower. Like with the Department of Biology who has just tried this program, they have 800 students enrolled and the fact that more than one person with different backgrounds/concentration/focus/intentions is marking it, even if it was only one person marking, there will be errors not just in the marking but adding the total as well.
It is better if there is one than more person checking the electronic paper and memo and all 800 gets marked the same way than having to mark, add and double check all 800 individually.
On your comment of the timeline... There is scheduled lecture times scheduled for the students to complete it, with a computer lab booked and assistants as well. These times should be enough for the average student to complete it. The students will also receive a deadline for the submission of the code, which would be not later than after the first two lectures of the formal Anatomy curriculum.
Thanks for your thoughts.
The best thing about all this is the automatic marking. I really like it. It is also something that will make learning anatomy basics so simple. I recall when I first entered the anatomy lecture room, everything was strange. The professors were also intimidating. Even simple stuff from high school like differences between an artery and a vein seemed strange. Currently, undergraduate students or even postgraduate students find anatomy terminologies so strange. What we are grappling with is how to make studying anatomy so interesting to students. You know students simply cram to get the passmark without any meaningful learning. By the time they reach 5th year, they have forgotten. Desire, may be this is one way to go. Is that Riddel computer program so copyrighted or I can also access it?
ReplyDeleteCheers
Mubuuke
Mubuuke,
DeleteSee comment of the automatic marking above.
The irony is that this Anatomical terminology does not only form the foundation for the subject itself but also for their medical careers -- the big picture. I want to say that it is almost all Anatomy lecturers' responsibility to lay a good foundation on the terminology!
Interactive electronic learning seems for fun than some of the traditional methods of teaching Anatomy!
There is a possibility for you to receive a test-version of the program for a few months. It will have to be send to you electronically after which you will receive a password to activate it and then the program will expire at a specific time. If you're serious about taking a look at it, let me know and I'll put you in contact with Dr Ackerman.
Thanx for the comment!
I like the collaboration!
ReplyDeletehi Desire. i was wondering about the Riddel system and how it works considering we have the same IT support. how many students can you cater for in one sitting?
ReplyDeletethanks
hope u and the family are well and when u back on campus would love that cuppa coffee
verona
Hi Verona!
DeleteThe Riddel program is internal to our department but available to everyone who wants to take a look at it/use it at Medunsa. IT dept not so much involved in the program itself but they make sure that the comp labs are working, students are able to log in, and that the server link is established. One sitting = all labs that are linked to the server with the Riddel program. We've had biology use our comp lab in BMS, at basement as well as library together.
Will come by soon!
Des