Evaluate the effectiveness of incomplete handouts over complete handouts in pathology lectures and students perception

Background: Handouts make the lectures “portable and enduring”. Students’ performance, can vary depending on the type of handouts. Complete handouts are one which contains 100% content of the lecture and incomplete hand-outs are one which contains 75% of the lecture content. Note taking by students is generally seen as an integral part of the process of learning from lectures. But it interferes with ability to listen. Writing in the blank spaces in hand-out during a lecture may not interfere with listening ability and allow students to be alert and active, and learn by writing.

Objectives: To asses and to know the perception of 2nd year MBBS student on the usefulness of incomplete handouts over complete handouts in pathology lectures.

Methodology: It is an intervention study done in 41 students of 2nd MBBS in pathology lectures, where the complete handout given to the students on the day of lecture and after the class a recall test was conducted. After 1week a retention test was conducted. Similar intervention was done for the incomplete handout. Pre validated MCQs was used. The feedback was taken at the end of the study.

Results: study showed the results in MCQ scores for incomplete handout (mean=5.73+1.24) is better than complete handout MCQ scores (mean=3.61+1.51) and the majority of students felt that incomplete handouts increased their motivation in learning and helped in understanding pathology.

Conclusion: Majority of student perception towards the use of incomplete handouts was more than the complete handouts. The effectiveness of incomplete handouts is also shown better than complete handoout.