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Authors are the souls of any journal, and deserve much respect. To publish a journal manuscripts are needed from authors. Authors have a great responsibility for producing facts of their work in terms of number and results truthfully and an individual honesty is expected from authors in this regards. Both ways its true "No authors-No manuscripts-No journals" and "No journals–No manuscripts–No authors". Reviewing a manuscript is also a very responsible and important task of any peer-reviewed journal and to be taken seriously. It needs knowledge on the subject, sincerity, honesty and determination. Although the process of reviewing a manuscript is a time consuming task butit is expected to give one's best remarks within the time frame of the journal.
Salient features of the JCDR: It is a biomedical, multidisciplinary (including all medical and dental specialities), e-journal, with wide scope and extensive author support. At the same time, a free text of manuscript is available in HTML and PDF format. There is fast growing authorship and readership with JCDR as this can be judged by the number of articles published in it i e; in Feb 2007 of its first issue, it contained 5 articles only, and now in its recent volume published in April 2011, it contained 67 manuscripts. This e-journal is fulfilling the commitments and objectives sincerely, (as stated by Editor-in-chief in his preface to first edition) i e; to encourage physicians through the internet, especially from the developing countries who witness a spectrum of disease and acquire a wealth of knowledge to publish their experiences to benefit the medical community in patients care. I also feel that many of us have work of substance, newer ideas, adequate clinical materials but poor in medical writing and hesitation to submit the work and need help. JCDR provides authors help in this regards.
Timely publication of journal: Publication of manuscripts and bringing out the issue in time is one of the positive aspects of JCDR and is possible with strong support team in terms of peer reviewers, proof reading, language check, computer operators, etc. This is one of the great reasons for authors to submit their work with JCDR. Another best part of JCDR is "Online first Publications" facilities available for the authors. This facility not only provides the prompt publications of the manuscripts but at the same time also early availability of the manuscripts for the readers.
Indexation and online availability: Indexation transforms the journal in some sense from its local ownership to the worldwide professional community and to the public.JCDR is indexed with Embase & EMbiology, Google Scholar, Index Copernicus, Chemical Abstracts Service, Journal seek Database, Indian Science Abstracts, to name few of them. Manuscriptspublished in JCDR are available on major search engines ie; google, yahoo, msn.
In the era of fast growing newer technologies, and in computer and internet friendly environment the manuscripts preparation, submission, review, revision, etc and all can be done and checked with a click from all corer of the world, at any time. Of course there is always a scope for improvement in every field and none is perfect. To progress, one needs to identify the areas of one's weakness and to strengthen them.
It is well said that "happy beginning is half done" and it fits perfectly with JCDR. It has grown considerably and I feel it has already grown up from its infancy to adolescence, achieving the status of standard online e-journal form Indian continent since its inception in Feb 2007. This had been made possible due to the efforts and the hard work put in it. The way the JCDR is improving with every new volume, with good quality original manuscripts, makes it a quality journal for readers. I must thank and congratulate Dr Hemant Jain, Editor-in-Chief JCDR and his team for their sincere efforts, dedication, and determination for making JCDR a fast growing journal.
Every one of us: authors, reviewers, editors, and publisher are responsible for enhancing the stature of the journal. I wish for a great success for JCDR."
Thanking you
With sincere regards
Dr. Rajendra Kumar Ghritlaharey, M.S., M. Ch., FAIS
Associate Professor,
Department of Paediatric Surgery, Gandhi Medical College & Associated
Kamla Nehru & Hamidia Hospitals Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462 001 (India)
E-mail: drrajendrak1@rediffmail.com
On May 11,2011
Dr. Shankar P.R.
"On looking back through my Gmail archives after being requested by the journal to write a short editorial about my experiences of publishing with the Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research (JCDR), I came across an e-mail from Dr. Hemant Jain, Editor, in March 2007, which introduced the new electronic journal. The main features of the journal which were outlined in the e-mail were extensive author support, cash rewards, the peer review process, and other salient features of the journal.
Over a span of over four years, we (I and my colleagues) have published around 25 articles in the journal. In this editorial, I plan to briefly discuss my experiences of publishing with JCDR and the strengths of the journal and to finally address the areas for improvement.
My experiences of publishing with JCDR: Overall, my experiences of publishing withJCDR have been positive. The best point about the journal is that it responds to queries from the author. This may seem to be simple and not too much to ask for, but unfortunately, many journals in the subcontinent and from many developing countries do not respond or they respond with a long delay to the queries from the authors 1. The reasons could be many, including lack of optimal secretarial and other support. Another problem with many journals is the slowness of the review process. Editorial processing and peer review can take anywhere between a year to two years with some journals. Also, some journals do not keep the contributors informed about the progress of the review process. Due to the long review process, the articles can lose their relevance and topicality. A major benefit with JCDR is the timeliness and promptness of its response. In Dr Jain's e-mail which was sent to me in 2007, before the introduction of the Pre-publishing system, he had stated that he had received my submission and that he would get back to me within seven days and he did!
Most of the manuscripts are published within 3 to 4 months of their submission if they are found to be suitable after the review process. JCDR is published bimonthly and the accepted articles were usually published in the next issue. Recently, due to the increased volume of the submissions, the review process has become slower and it ?? Section can take from 4 to 6 months for the articles to be reviewed. The journal has an extensive author support system and it has recently introduced a paid expedited review process. The journal also mentions the average time for processing the manuscript under different submission systems - regular submission and expedited review.
Strengths of the journal: The journal has an online first facility in which the accepted manuscripts may be published on the website before being included in a regular issue of the journal. This cuts down the time between their acceptance and the publication. The journal is indexed in many databases, though not in PubMed. The editorial board should now take steps to index the journal in PubMed. The journal has a system of notifying readers through e-mail when a new issue is released. Also, the articles are available in both the HTML and the PDF formats. I especially like the new and colorful page format of the journal. Also, the access statistics of the articles are available. The prepublication and the manuscript tracking system are also helpful for the authors.
Areas for improvement: In certain cases, I felt that the peer review process of the manuscripts was not up to international standards and that it should be strengthened. Also, the number of manuscripts in an issue is high and it may be difficult for readers to go through all of them. The journal can consider tightening of the peer review process and increasing the quality standards for the acceptance of the manuscripts. I faced occasional problems with the online manuscript submission (Pre-publishing) system, which have to be addressed.
Overall, the publishing process with JCDR has been smooth, quick and relatively hassle free and I can recommend other authors to consider the journal as an outlet for their work."
Dr. P. Ravi Shankar
KIST Medical College, P.O. Box 14142, Kathmandu, Nepal.
E-mail: ravi.dr.shankar@gmail.com
On April 2011 Anuradha
Dear team JCDR, I would like to thank you for the very professional and polite service provided by everyone at JCDR. While i have been in the field of writing and editing for sometime, this has been my first attempt in publishing a scientific paper.Thank you for hand-holding me through the process.
Dr. Anuradha
E-mail: anuradha2nittur@gmail.com
On Jan 2020
Original article / research
Full Version
Peer Assisted Learning: A New Teaching Approach in Undergraduate Medical Students
Correspondence Address :
R Divya,
21/B, Block/Staff Quarters, Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College and Hospital, Perambalur, Tamil Nadu, India.
E-mail: divyaashok47@yahoo.in
Aim: To introduce peer assisted learning as new teaching and learning method in first year medical students and to compare the impact of this method on learners with traditional method of learning by Objective Structured Practical Examination (OSPE).
Materials and Methods: In this observational study, first year MBBS students were randomly divided into two groups- the regular module and PAL module. In regular module, the students were taught by the faculty. In PAL module, the students were taught by a previously trained final MBBS students. In PAL module, senior medical students were trained on the clinical-practical topic to be taught. After training, the senior medical students taught their juniors. In the regular module, the junior students were taught the same clinical practical topic by the faculty. At the end of the session, the students were assessed by OSPE. Paired t-test was used for assessing effectiveness of educational methods. The p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: Students’ post-test marks in PAL group were higher than the regular module group (12±2.9 vs 9.8±3.5, p<0.01). Majority (70%) of the students agreed that PAL is a better method of learning and develops teaching attitude. Most of the students strongly agreed that PAL provides friendly environment for learning (80%). About 70% of students gave positive response about need of similar sessions in the future.
Conclusion: PAL is an interesting and exciting teaching-learning methodology in undergraduate medical training.
Educational study, Medical education project, Teaching-learning methodology
The PAL is a well-recognised teaching-learning methodology in medical education. It is an innovative approach of learning involving a process of socialisation among students (1). Teaching medical students is one of the important tasks for all medical teachers along with their valuable contribution in patient care and research. It is reflected by the word itself, as “doctor” comes from the Latin word “docere” which means “to teach” (2).
From the student’s point of vision, PAL is a combined and cooperative learning strategy which provides numerous advantages such as close communication between tutee and tutor. This close association could make possible group debate which is difficult to perform in the company of well-known faculty staff. The teaching action by itself can progress tutor’s understanding of the subject and thereby give them a chance to steadily increase their self-confidence and facilitate them to encourage their communication skills essential for better teaching as new educators (3),(4).
National Medical Commission (NMC) of India has implemented the Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) curriculum for medical students to improve the quality of medical education with the growing needs of the country. NMC endorses the role of IMG from a clinician to a communicator, leader, teacher and a member of the healthcare team (5).
Many studies have been conducted on PAL that found significant results in terms of students developing positive attitude towards teaching, opportunities for networking among themselves (6),(7). This study was conducted to find out many other aspects of teaching learning methodologies such as if the PAL method has an advantage over the regular teaching method in terms of developing teaching attitude, students’ self-confidence, if it provides comfortable teaching environment, better knowledge retention, cordial environment for learning, if it is a better method of learning and if it improves professional bonding between the students. The study also wanted to find if PAL has an edge over regular teaching method in terms of academic performance of the students. This study was conducted to understand if PAL could be introduced as a new teaching modality in the institute for the first-year medical students.
An observational study was conducted in Karpagam faculty of Medical Sciences, Coimbatore for a period of two months (November 2018 to December 2018). The study population was first year undergraduate medical students and the study commenced after obtaining ethical clearance (IHEC/150/physiology/10/2018) from the Institutional Ethics Committee.
Inclusion criteria: First year MBBS students and final year medical students willing to participate in study were included.
Exclusion criteria: Students not willing to participate in the study were excluded.
Sample size calculation: Assuming a 50% agree towards PAL and using the formula n=(zα/2)2 pq/d2 (zα =1.96, p=50, q=50, d=10) where, n is sample size, zα/2 is normal deviate for two-tailed alternative hypothesis at a level of significance, p is expected proportion, q is 100-p, d is absolute precision. Using the formula, total sample size was calculated as 100 subjects (8).
Informed consent was obtained from 100 first year MBBS students who were willing to participate in the study. Sample was randomly divided into two groups with 50 students each as regular and PAL modules. In regular module group, faculty was the tutor and the first year MBBS students were the tutee. In PAL module, the first year MBBS students (tutee) were taught by a previously trained final MBBS (senior) students (tutor). In PAL module, senior medical students were trained on the clinical-practical basics of how to structure a lesson plan and ask effective questions and were allowed to practice the teaching skills. After training, the senior medical students taught the junior students. In the regular module, the first MBBS students were taught the same clinical practical topic by the faculty (tutor). The duration of each session was one hour and the topic was measurement of blood pressure.
In the PAL module, one senior student taught 10 junior students, so a total of five senior students taught 50 junior students. In this experimental set up, two practical sessions were conducted, one for each group. After each session, cross over was done i.e., students in regular module were exposed to PAL module and vice versa.
At the beginning and end of session, the students were assessed by Objective Structured Practical Examination (OSPE) test. A feedback about PAL module was obtained from the students using a questionnaire consisting of 16 questions, of which eight questions related to socio-demographic details and eight questions on PAL module. The student feedback evaluation was done using a five-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 2=disagree, 3=neutral, 4=agree, 5=strongly agree) to assess their learning experience, perception towards the activity, and the level of satisfaction with the activity (3).
Statistical Analysis
Statistical analysis was carried out using software R version 3.6. Continuous variables were expressed as mean and standard deviation and categorical variables were presented as counts and percentages. Scores of pre and post intervention tests of two modules were presented as Mean±SD. Paired t-test was used for assessing effectiveness of educational methods. The p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Out of 250 MBBS students invited, 105 students (42%) participated in the study. This included 100 first year MBBS students belonging to age group of 18 to 19 years (50 females and 50 males); and five final year MBBS students belonging to age group of 21 to 22 years (three females and two males). The post-test scores in PAL module were higher than regular module (12±2.9 vs 9.8±3.5, p<0.01) (Table/Fig 1).
(Table/Fig 2) shows the response of students towards the effect of PAL on learning status. Majority (70%) of the students agreed that PAL is a better method of learning and develops teaching attitude. Most of the students strongly agreed that PAL provides friendly environment for learning (80%).
The study showed that PAL develops better teaching attitude and helps in improving the self confidence of the students. It also suggests that PAL provides better knowledge retention and improves professional bonding among students. (Table/Fig 3) shows comparison of the present study results with other studies (6),(7),(9),(10),(11).
PAL has a positive effect on the learning due to the preparation, motivation involved in teaching. It also advocates that medical students are proficient in shaping quality PAL programmes, and the feedback from tutee students can help them improve their enthusiasm, teaching skills and confidence levels to conduct similar programmes in future (12).
The medical colleges/teaching institutions can utilise PAL as one of the teaching learning methodology. Thus, the abets of PAL are not just restricted to students but also encompasses the medical institutions (13).
Limitation(s)
The training of staff and students, construction of learning resources, and evaluation design, all require faculty as well as students’ time. The study involved only one clinical-practical topic. Selection of student tutors was based on voluntary willingness, which could have been done in some other systemic selection methodology.
PAL could play a useful role in an undergraduate medical education. It is an exciting teaching-learning method in undergraduate medical students and has the benefits of increasing teaching skills of students. However, further research is needed to clearly launch the methodology for identification, selection and training of the student tutors.
10.7860/JCDR/2021/48267.15081
Date of Submission: Dec 22, 2020
Date of Peer Review: Feb 03, 2021
Date of Acceptance: Apr 24, 2021
Date of Publishing: Jul 01, 2021
AUTHOR DECLARATION:
• Financial or Other Competing Interests: None
• Was Ethics Committee Approval obtained for this study? Yes
• Was informed consent obtained from the subjects involved in the study? Yes
• For any images presented appropriate consent has been obtained from the subjects. NA
PLAGIARISM CHECKING METHODS:
• Plagiarism X-checker: Dec 28, 2020
• Manual Googling: Apr 23, 2021
• iThenticate Software: May 29, 2021 (18%)
ETYMOLOGY: Author Origin
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- Index Copernicus ICV 2017: 134.54
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- Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
- Embase
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- HINARI Access to Research in Health Programme
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