Near-Peer Teaching in Human Anatomy from a Tutors’ Perspective: An Eighteen-Year-Old Experience at the University of Bologna

Ester Orsini, Marilisa Quaranta, Giulia Adalgisa Mariani, Sara Mongiorgi, Lucio Cocco, Anna Maria Billi, Lucia Manzoli and Stefano Ratti
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Ester Orsini: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Marilisa Quaranta: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Giulia Adalgisa Mariani: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Sara Mongiorgi: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Lucio Cocco: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Anna Maria Billi: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Lucia Manzoli: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Stefano Ratti: Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, Human Anatomy Section, University of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 19, issue 1, 1-17

Abstract: The University of Bologna School of Medicine in 2003 adopted a near-peer teaching (NPT) program with senior medical students teaching and assisting younger students in human anatomy laboratories. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and outcomes of this program—unique on the Italian academic panorama—from the tutors’ perspective. An anonymous online survey was administered to all those who acted as peer tutors in the period from 2003 to 2021; it evaluated tutors’ perceptions regarding the influence of the tutoring experience on their skillset gains, academic performance, and professional career. Furthermore, tutors were asked to express their views on the value of cadaver dissection in medical education and professional development. The overall perception of the NPT program was overwhelmingly positive and the main reported benefits were improved long-term knowledge retention and academic performance, improved communication, team-working and time management skills, and enhanced self-confidence and motivation. Most tutors strongly believed that cadaver dissection was an invaluable learning tool in medical education, helped them to develop professionalism and human values, and positively influenced the caring of their future patients. Nearly all the participants highlighted the importance of voluntary body donation for medical education and research. The present results supported the thesis that tutors themselves benefited from the act of teaching peers; this impactful experience equipped them with a wide range of transferable skills that they could draw on as future educators and healthcare professionals.

Keywords: near-peer teaching; human anatomy; medical school; learning; cadaver dissection (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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