Criticism

1. NICE Evidence Search Student Champion Scheme: Evaluating Student-Owned Learning Authors: Loveridge S, Lyon A “Inspiring young people to not only learn themselves, but also to teach peers, provides an opportunity to build confidence in educating others.” Student Reflection Background Peer-Peer Advice Representatives from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) were invited to Birmingham Medical School to introduce the NICE Evidence Search Student Champion Scheme, a peer-led teaching initiative delivered by students, for students. The scheme aims to enhance understanding of Evidence Based Medicine whilstproviding valuable student teaching experience; both skills that areinvaluable to tomorrow’s doctors. “I think I should have formed some kind of summary activity at the end in order to cement some ideas” Method of Delivering Session Students recognised the value of actively engaging their peers in the session; among their tools were quizzes, searches and worksheets “I warned the group that I would be asking each individual (a question) and looking for a different answer each time…it encouraged them to switch back on and become more involved with the session” The level of peer-to-peer interaction within a session was frequently remarked upon, with many students gaining a new appreciation of its importance Interactivity “Make your session as fun and interactive as possible to make sure it is memorable and informative for your colleagues” Students felt it was important that their peers felt comfortable and able to ask open questions, providing the opportunity to do so in an informal environment Open Learning Environment “Due to the informal nature of the session, students were willing to ask questions” “I felt everybody was interested...because I made it clear from the beginning how Evidence Search would help them individually” Students felt that their session worked well when their peers understood why the content of the session was relevant to their careers and to their course Relevance Teaching Experience “Plan ahead, develop a clear structure to the presentation otherwise students won’t be interested...The key is relevance...Be enthusiastic” Students recognised the need to adapt their sessions based on the prior knowledge of their peers. They assessed this through surveys or group discussions before the teaching session “Sending out a pre-session questionnaire…worked well… students were interested in the answer(s) to the question” Understanding audience Twenty-six volunteering students were taught how to use the NICE Evidence Search Portal by NICE Representatives. Students subsequently had to plan and facilitate a teaching session to a group of between ten and fifteen of their peers in order to pass on what they had learnt. Students empathised with the busy timetables of their peers and adjusted the length of their session accordingly “It proved popular to deliver a condensed session over around35 to 40 min rather than split the session up” Timing Students had imaginative methods of encouraging peers to attend their session (including providing sweets!) but also emphasised the importance of continuing engagement after the session “I asked each student to email a feedback report...the only criticism was that the students wish they had known about the site sooner” Attendance and Follow-Up Evaluation “With only access to one computer…I had to ask people to try it out in their own time…if there are any difficulties using the website, then I wouldn’t be able to help them” The major problem faced by students was the lack of resources required to facilitate a fully interactive and guided session Criticism Students reflected on what went well and what did not go so well within their teaching sessions. Here, we qualitatively analyse their responses to highlight key areas of a successful peer-to-peer teaching session.