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Promoting Active Learning in the Gross Anatomy Laboratory

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Teaching Anatomy

Abstract

Active learning aims to engage learners in higher-order cognitive tasks such as problem-solving, knowledge application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. It is an umbrella term encompassing a wide range of instructional methods with a rich theoretical underpinning. The gross anatomy laboratory, a small-group, highly interactive learning environment, offers rich opportunities for implementing such methods. The few examples discussed are as follows: (1) dissection classes triggered by clinical problems artificially created on the cadavers, to stimulate knowledge application and problem-solving; (2) a cloud-based mobile platform for peer teaching during dissection classes; and (3) a task-based prosection class, wherein students need to complete tasks based on learning materials organized into stations. To further promote student engagement, teachers can adopt the one-minute preceptor framework in interacting with students in order to foster student ownership of a problem and to provide appropriate feedback, even if the preceptorial encounters are brief.

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Acknowledgments

Parts of the work described in this chapter is supported by the Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative and the iClass team of The University of Hong Kong and also by the project entitled “Developing Active Learning Pedagogies and Mobile Applications in University STEM Education” (PolyU2/T&L/16-19), which is funded by the University Grants Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region with additional support from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macao Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of China

    Lap Ki Chan

  2. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China

    Ronnie Homi Shroff

  3. School of Biomedical Sciences, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China

    Jian Yang & Tomasz Cecot

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  1. Lap Ki Chan
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  2. Ronnie Homi Shroff
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  3. Jian Yang
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  4. Tomasz Cecot
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Correspondence to Lap Ki Chan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macao Special Administrative Region, China

    Lap Ki Chan

  2. Department of Clinical Anatomy, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA

    Wojciech Pawlina

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Chan, L.K., Shroff, R.H., Yang, J., Cecot, T. (2020). Promoting Active Learning in the Gross Anatomy Laboratory. In: Chan, L.K., Pawlina, W. (eds) Teaching Anatomy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43283-6_26

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