Abstract:

The traditional University class is usually based on the explanation of diagrams that often have many arrows, processes, images, and little text. In class, the teacher interprets the outline and makes sense of it.

During the last semester of the course 19/20, with the stage of confinement and online teaching, we have observed that these slides of schemes included in the materials provided to students on the virtual campus, are difficult to interpret by the student without the help of the teacher. Virtual teaching also exacerbates the low participation and passivity of students in their learning process.

These reflections have led the teaching team to counteract this experience by initiating the SLIDE-4-U program (2020PID-UB/023). The aim of this project was to involve the student in their own learning process and that of their peers through the explanation in class of the slides, specially designed for this purpose.

It was applied in the first semester of the course 20/21 in the subject “Molecular Nutrition” in the degree of “Human Nutrition and Dietetics” at the University of Barcelona. For that, an online seminar session focused on “Immunonutrition” was prepared with slides containing single specific questions to be solved or topics to be explained. Each seminar involved around 30-35 students. The teacher conducted the session by selecting the student to explain the slide. Without previous preparation the chosen student had to interpret the content of the slide. His/her explanations were complemented or corrected by the teacher, if necessary, during the class.

At the end of the class a Kahoot questionnaire was launched to obtain quantitative information about the students’ learning in this seminar. In addition, some questions about the students’ opinion were also inquired for obtaining qualitative evidence of the intervention.

Overall, the 95% of the answers from the test were correct, demonstrating that the peer teaching is a valid tool to be used. Very low number of participants (1-3%) found that the activity was difficult. All students (100%) liked much or very much the intervention and considered that the experience was positive or very positive. The teaching team were also very enthusiastic with the seminar structure and the results obtained.

In conclusion, the SLIDE-4-U intervention seems a positive approach to involve the student in the learning process.

Keywords:

Peer teaching, active participation, research teaching project, online class.