Rationale and Objectives
The Socratic method has long been a traditional teaching method in medicine and law. It is currently accepted as the standard of teaching in clinical wards, while the didactic teaching method is widely used during the first 2 years of medical school. There are arguments in support of both styles of teaching.
Materials and Methods
After attending a radiology conference demonstrating different teaching methods, third-year and fourth-year medical students were invited to participate in an online anonymous survey.
Results
Of the 74 students who responded, 72% preferred to learn radiology in an active context. They preferred being given adequate time to find abnormalities on images, with feedback afterward from instructors, and they thought the best approach was a volunteer-based system of answering questions using the Socratic method in the small group. They desired to be asked questions in a way that was constructive and not belittling, to realize their knowledge deficits and to have daily pressure to come prepared. The respondents thought that pimping was an effective teaching tool, supporting previous studies.
Conclusions
When teaching radiology, instructors should use the Socratic method to a greater extent. Combining Socratic teaching with gentle questioning by an instructor through the use of PowerPoint is a preferred method among medical students. This information is useful to improve medical education in the future, especially in radiology education.
The Socratic method has long been a traditional teaching method in medicine and law. It is currently accepted as the standard of teaching in clinical wards, while the didactic teaching method is widely used during the first 2 years of medical school. There are arguments in support of both styles of teaching.
The didactic method is efficient and useful to disseminate a large amount of information in a brief amount of time to a large audience. Students passively listen in lecture while the lecturer presents a topic. To provide a baseline foundation of information to first-year and second-year students, the didactic method is commonly used. Medical schools across the country have been incorporating problem-based learning into the preclinical years to encourage more active learning, but a criticism is that although students retain information better through problem-based learning, the breadth of knowledge covered is not as wide as through didactic teaching.
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Materials and methods
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Results
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Table 1
Summary of Collected Responses
Question Response Percentage Response Count 1. What year are you? Third year 56.8% 42 Fourth year 43.2% 32 Total 74 2. Which do you prefer as a method of teaching? An interactive dialogue between students and teacher in a small group setting. 81.4% 57 A didactic teaching method (traditional lecture format). 18.6% 13 Total 70 3. Which do you prefer? Being called upon randomly to answer questions. 34.3% 24 A volunteer based system of answering questions. 65.7% 46 Total 70 4. Which do you prefer? Instructors pointing out radiological findings on x-rays/MRI/CT/etc. 30.0% 21 Having time to analyze radiological images yourself with instructors giving input afterwards. 70.0% 49 Total 70 5. If you were reading a radiology film in a small group setting with five to eight students and one resident or attending, which teaching style would you prefer? The Socratic method. 93.3% 28 The didactic approach. 6.7% 2 Total 30 6. What does “pimping” mean to you? (Pick all that apply) Attending physicians singling one person out in a group and asking question after question. 46.4% 13 Attending physicians singling one person out in a group to answer a question, then moving on to someone else if he/she does not know the answer. 50.0% 14 Attending physicians throwing out a question to anyone in the group. 3.6% 1 Total 28 7. Do you think getting “pimped” is an effective method of learning? Yes 72.6% 45 No 27.4% 17 Total 62
CT, computed tomography; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging.
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Discussion
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Conclusions
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References
1. Le T., Amin C., Bhushan V.: First aid for the wards: insider advice for the clinical years.2002.McGraw-HillNew York
2. Andrews , John D.W.: Teaching format and student style: their interactive effects on learning. Res Higher Educ 1981; 14: pp. 161-178.
3. Wear D., Kokinova M., Keck-McNulty C., et. al.: Pimping: perspectives of 4th year medical students. Teach Learn Med 2005; 17: pp. 184-191.