Submited on: 19 Mar 2013 08:59:20 PM GMT
Published on: 20 Mar 2013 06:50:18 AM GMT
 
Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions
Posted by Dr. William J Maloney on 14 Feb 2014 11:51:00 PM GMT Reviewed by Interested Peers

  • What are the main claims of the paper and how important are they?

    The main purpose of this paper is to relate the experiences of the authors in conducting small group learning sessions in a cost effective manner.


  • Are these claims novel? If not, please specify papers that weaken the claims to the originality of this one.

    Yes


  • Are the claims properly placed in the context of the previous literature?

    Yes


  • Do the results support the claims? If not, what other evidence is required?

    Yes


  • If a protocol is provided, for example for a randomized controlled trial, are there any important deviations from it? If so, have the authors explained adequately why the deviations occurred?

    No


  • Is the methodology valid? Does the paper offer enough details of its methodology that its experiments or its analyses could be reproduced?

    Yes


  • Would any other experiments or additional information improve the paper? How much better would the paper be if this extra work was done, and how difficult would such work be to do, or to provide?

    No


  • Is this paper outstanding in its discipline? (For example, would you like to see this work presented in a seminar at your hospital or university? Do you feel these results need to be incorporated in your next general lecture on the subject?) If yes, what makes it outstanding? If not, why not?

    Yes- it would be a great lecture to faculty at either a dental or a medical school.


  • Other Comments:

    The authors state that the most important skill to be developed in conducting small group sessions are facilitation skills.  The authors state all the physical and material needs for one who might be interested in conducting such a session.  The sessions are ongoing and the initial feedback which the authors have received have been positive.

  • Invited by the author to review this article? :
    No
  • Have you previously published on this or a similar topic?:
    No
  • References:
    None
  • Experience and credentials in the specific area of science:

    clinical associate professor

  • How to cite:  Maloney W J.Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions[Review of the article 'Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions in a Cost-Effective Manner: Our Experiences ' by Dubey A].WebmedCentral 2013;5(2):WMCRW002997
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Small group learning sessions
Posted by Anonymous Reviewer on 22 Apr 2013 08:23:40 AM GMT

  • What are the main claims of the paper and how important are they?

    Small group active learning strategies can be employed in medical schools in developing nations and sources of support of facilitators are widely available. The authors believe it is time these strategies are more widely employed!

    This is an important article in changing medical school education


  • Are these claims novel? If not, please specify papers that weaken the claims to the originality of this one.

    No


  • Are the claims properly placed in the context of the previous literature?

    Yes


  • Do the results support the claims? If not, what other evidence is required?

    It is a series of case examples of how small group teaching may be implemented in developing countries


  • If a protocol is provided, for example for a randomized controlled trial, are there any important deviations from it? If so, have the authors explained adequately why the deviations occurred?

    N/A


  • Is the methodology valid? Does the paper offer enough details of its methodology that its experiments or its analyses could be reproduced?

    It highlights examples of the criticisms levelled at the application of small group teaching in a developing country


  • Would any other experiments or additional information improve the paper? How much better would the paper be if this extra work was done, and how difficult would such work be to do, or to provide?

    Greater examples


  • Is this paper outstanding in its discipline? (For example, would you like to see this work presented in a seminar at your hospital or university? Do you feel these results need to be incorporated in your next general lecture on the subject?) If yes, what makes it outstanding? If not, why not?

    No


  • Other Comments:

    Although this paper answers its proposed question, the conclusion is profoundly subjective and is clearly agenda driven. The article automatically assumes that this process is a good thing and teachers relinquishing control over the teaching is a noble attribute. The reviewer would strongly disagree with this. And in fact the role of PBL certainly in the early years of teaching is destructive and reveals wide spread gaps in knowledge during clinical practice. I am a student of the UK PBL system so I know how it can be implemented in a poorly thought out way. PBL may have a role in the final 1 or 2 years but not earlier

  • Competing interests:
    Student of the PBL system
  • Invited by the author to review this article? :
    No
  • Have you previously published on this or a similar topic?:
    No
  • References:
    None
  • Experience and credentials in the specific area of science:

    PBL student

  • How to cite:  Anonymous.Small group learning sessions[Review of the article 'Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions in a Cost-Effective Manner: Our Experiences ' by Dubey A].WebmedCentral 2013;4(4):WMCRW002696
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  • What are the main claims of the paper and how important are they?

    The article tried to inform readers about how cost-effective is the small group learning sessions are in their medical school. This is good because it provides information on how little resources could be utelised to achieve better results.


  • Are these claims novel? If not, please specify papers that weaken the claims to the originality of this one.

    Ok


  • Are the claims properly placed in the context of the previous literature?

    Well, the write up was not framed to be like an article but rather looks more of a report.


  • Do the results support the claims? If not, what other evidence is required?

    Yes


  • If a protocol is provided, for example for a randomized controlled trial, are there any important deviations from it? If so, have the authors explained adequately why the deviations occurred?

    NA


  • Is the methodology valid? Does the paper offer enough details of its methodology that its experiments or its analyses could be reproduced?

    Yes it is because it is a method that have been in practice in many places in Africa where they have no enough facilities, it is called small goup discussion sessions where students organize the sessions themselves or the teachers.


  • Would any other experiments or additional information improve the paper? How much better would the paper be if this extra work was done, and how difficult would such work be to do, or to provide?

    The authors didnt inform the readers about their working objectives and why initially they decided to do this trial. Where the authors having serious problem with students learning in large group?how was the performance of the students tought in a large group and how was it in small group?it is not just reporting positive results without figures to support as well as comparing the past and the present.


  • Is this paper outstanding in its discipline? (For example, would you like to see this work presented in a seminar at your hospital or university? Do you feel these results need to be incorporated in your next general lecture on the subject?) If yes, what makes it outstanding? If not, why not?

    It is not outstanding but is fair since it informs the experience of the authors in their environment


  • Other Comments:

    The authors should try and present the report to the form of an article with working objectives and aim.

  • Competing interests:
    None
  • Invited by the author to review this article? :
    No
  • Have you previously published on this or a similar topic?:
    No
  • References:
    None
  • Experience and credentials in the specific area of science:

    Lecturer for years in Medical schools in Nigeria.

  • How to cite:  Yahaya A I.How good and cost effective is the Small Group Learning Sessions?[Review of the article 'Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions in a Cost-Effective Manner: Our Experiences ' by Dubey A].WebmedCentral 2013;4(4):WMCRW002690
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  • What are the main claims of the paper and how important are they?

    The main claim is to show that small group learning sessions can be of great help in medical schools and this is very important, specially in developing coutries


  • Are these claims novel? If not, please specify papers that weaken the claims to the originality of this one.

    Yes, they are novel because the authors have studied groups in Nepal and Aruba


  • Are the claims properly placed in the context of the previous literature?

    Yes, the claims are properly placed


  • Do the results support the claims? If not, what other evidence is required?

    Yes


  • If a protocol is provided, for example for a randomized controlled trial, are there any important deviations from it? If so, have the authors explained adequately why the deviations occurred?

    NA


  • Is the methodology valid? Does the paper offer enough details of its methodology that its experiments or its analyses could be reproduced?

    Yes, the methodology can be reproduced anywhere.


  • Would any other experiments or additional information improve the paper? How much better would the paper be if this extra work was done, and how difficult would such work be to do, or to provide?

    In this experiment the small groups were said to have 30 students. I thnk that another experiment could be made with smaller groups


  • Is this paper outstanding in its discipline? (For example, would you like to see this work presented in a seminar at your hospital or university? Do you feel these results need to be incorporated in your next general lecture on the subject?) If yes, what makes it outstanding? If not, why not?

    Its is outstanding in the the field of medical teaching because it puts a light in the manner of medicine is taught in different countries.


  • Other Comments:

    I would like to ncourage the authors to keep on doing such works in this field

  • Competing interests:
    None
  • Invited by the author to review this article? :
    No
  • Have you previously published on this or a similar topic?:
    No
  • References:
    None
  • Experience and credentials in the specific area of science:

    I have been teahcing medical students for the last 30 years

  • How to cite:  Bedin V .Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions in a Cost-Effective Manner: Our Exprience[Review of the article 'Conducting Small Group Learning Sessions in a Cost-Effective Manner: Our Experiences ' by Dubey A].WebmedCentral 2013;4(3):WMCRW002653
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