Abstract:

Graphical literacy is part of reading and mathematical literacy. It detects skills of students to acquire and select relevant information from non-continuous text (tables, graphs, schemes) and student´s competence to create a graph and mathematical conclusion from it. [1], [2] An ability to get direct information from diagram or to anticipate their development according its shape depends on student´s knowledge about graph. [3]
The most important and the most widely used diagnostic methods (electrocardiography, electromyography…) in medical practice use examinations´ results in the graphical form.

Aims of our study were:
1. To determine students’ success in solving simple problem graphical physical – medical task.
2. To analyse procedure used by students for solving task.

At the end of the first semester, 133 first year medical students (84 women and 49 men) of 2 Slovak medical faculties had been solving the task: “The determine differences between patient’s highest and lowest daily body temperature during the second day of hospitalization.” The graphical dependence of virtual patient body temperature in time was drawn in the task assignment. The virtual temperature values were measured and registered during three days, always at 5 o´clock and 17 o´clock. There were two task solutions. Students did not have a time limit to solve the test.
Students’ answers were qualitative and quantitative analysed. The quantitative analysis was focused on correct value determination and using correct physical unit. The answer was considered right if the correct numeric value was also given the correct unit. If one parameter was missing or wrong, the whole result was considered incorrect.

Qualitative analysis was aimed exclusively on procedures, used for task solving by students. Evaluation was based on comments in answer sheets.
Quantitative analysis: One correct solution (correct number value and correct physical unit) was reported by 42.86 % of students. More than one half of all (54.6 %) gave fail answer. Neither student used both solving way. The task was not solved by one student.
Qualitative analysis: Right procedure to solve the task was chosen by 68.19% of all respondents. Nearly 29 % of responses ignored day of patient hospitalization. The lowest temperature in the second hospitalization day was incorrect detected in 2.2 % responses.
The presented results indicate insufficient ability of medical students to obtain the required information from the graph. This fact may negatively affect the quality of healthcare in the future. It may also to leads to patient damage.
We believe secondary school students should use more graphic representation for learning biology. Example for an educational topic - Blood pressure in different parts of vascular system.

Acknowledgement:
This work was supported by Grant project KEGA 026UK-4/2017.

References:
[1] OECD PISA 2018. Assessment and Analytical Framework. Retrieved from: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/5c07e4f1-en.pdf?expires=1583398961&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=78940B0F687CC3CE27771DC7D8D1A210
[2] OECD PISA 2021 Mathematic framework. Retrieved from: https://pisa2021-maths.oecd.org/#Content-Knowledge)
[3] Shah, P., Hoeffner, J.2002 Review of Graph Comprehension Research: Implications for Instruction. Educational Psychology Review 14, 47–69. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013180410169

Keywords:

Graphical literacy in medicine, medicine study, physical functional literacy, graph in medicine.