Effectiveness of Microteaching for Developing Observation,Communication,and Professional Behavior Skill Sets Among Occupational Therapy Students

PURPOSE: Preparing occupational therapy students for fieldwork and entry to the workforce is a complex undertaking that requires multiple methods of instruction. Outside the field of occupational therapy, microteaching has been used to build students’ oral communication skills, critical thinking, problem solving, self-confidence, and ability to deliver constructive feedback (Campos-Sánchez, Sánchez-Quevedo, Crespo-Ferrer, García-López, & Alaminos, 2013; Popovich & Katz, 2009; Zueger, Katz, & Popovich, 2014). The purpose of this study was to pilot microteaching in a classroom setting and to test its effectiveness in developing occupational therapy students’ clinical skills. The supporting research question was, Is microteaching more effective than traditional didactic/lab methods for increasing self-reported skills in observation, communication, and professional behaviors among occupational therapy students?

DESIGN: An experimental crossover design was used. The study was integrated into an 11-wk course. Students were randomly assigned to one of two groups. There were two 4-wk testing blocks. In Block 1, students in Group 1 engaged in a microteaching workshop while students in Group 2 engaged in a standard didactic/lab workshop, and vice versa for Block 2. Prior to Block 1, students were briefed about the study and invited to participate. Although engaging in both workshops was a course requirement, completion of questionnaires was voluntary. Participants included 32 full-time students who were enrolled as 2nd-year students in a master of occupational therapy program. There were 25 (78.1%) women and seven (21.9%) men, with ages ranging from 23 to 45 yr.

Data were gathered through a pretest survey and two posttest surveys. The pretest survey was made up of a demographic questionnaire and the General Self-Efficacy scale. Questionnaires included on both the pretest and posttest surveys were the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS), Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PRCA), and Observation Skills Questionnaire (OSQ). Additionally, the posttest surveys incorporated the Professional Behaviors Survey (PBS) and the Satisfaction with Peer Appraisal Scale (SPAS). Alpha coefficient scores for all scales ranged from .86 to .97. Data were imported into IBM SPSS Statistics Version 22.0 for analysis involving descriptive statistics, Spearman’s rank order correlation coefficients, and Mann–Whitney U tests.

RESULTS: The two student groups were homogenous at pretest. There were no significant differences between groups on reported SIAS, PRCA, and OSQ scores at posttest. Significant differences between groups on Posttests 1 and 2 emerged in relation to reported PBS scores (U = 24.00, z = –3.55, p < .001, and U = 216.00, z = 3.36, p < .001, respectively) and SPAS scores (U = 38.50, z = –2.93, p = .003, and U = 234.50, z = 4.09, p < .001, respectively). Consistent across both posttests, students who were in the microteaching workshop reported greater improvement in their professional behaviors (e.g., time management, applying constructive feedback, oral and written communication, critical thinking) in comparison to students in the didactic/lab workshop (Mdn = 27.00 vs. 21.00 and Mdn = 26.00 vs. 16.00, respectively). Similarly, students in the microteaching workshop reported greater satisfaction with feedback from their peers in comparison to students in the didactic/lab workshop at both posttests (Mdn = 23.50 vs. 18.00 and Mdn = 24.00 vs. 12.00, respectively).

CONCLUSION: Preparing occupational therapy students for fieldwork and entry into the profession is a key concern for educators. Results from the present study suggest that microteaching can be effectively applied in the classroom to develop professional behaviors and encourage peer-supported learning.

References

Campos-Sánchez, A., Sánchez-Quevedo, M., Crespo-Ferrer, P., García-López, J., & Alaminos, M. (2013). Microteaching as a self-learning tool: Students’ perceptions in the preparation and exposition of a microlesson in a tissue engineering course. Journal of Technology and Science Education, 3, 66–72. https://doi.org/10.3926/jotse.71

Popovich, N. G., & Katz, N. L. (2009). A microteaching exercise to develop performance-based abilities in pharmacy students. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 73(4), 73. https://doi.org/10.5688/aj730473

Zueger, P. M., Katz, N. L., & Popovich, N. G. (2014). Assessing outcomes and perceived benefits of a professional development seminar series. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 78(8), 150. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe788150