Student Perception of the Impact of Audience Response Software in a Team-Based Learning Self-Care Course

Objectives: Evidence evaluating audience response systems (ARS) used in team-based learning (TBL) compared to traditional classes is limited. The objectives of this study are to evaluate student perceptions of the technology and compare students’ assessment of technology with their performance. Method: TBL was implemented in the required self-care course (PP2120: Introduction to Pharmaceutical Care: Non-prescription drugs) at St. Louis College of Pharmacy, and an audience response system was implemented in Fall 2015. At the conclusion of the course, a web-based survey was administered to students. Results: Of the 29 students who successfully completed the course, 23 (79%) completed the survey. Student response to the audience response technology was generally favorable. Of the students who responded “somewhat agree” and “strongly agree” to questions related to ARS, 87% were more actively involved in the case, 96% felt the visual responses made understanding easier, and 91% felt the ARS would be useful in other courses in the curriculum. Student performance in the course was analyzed by Pearson correlation and was positively correlated with students who self-reported as technology enthusiasts (0.509, p=0.016) and early adopters of technology (0.601, p=0.004). Implications: This is the first study to measure the impact of ARS with TBL implementation in a self-care course. ARS data can be used to help implement TBL in pharmacy school curricula and further research can be performed to link student adoption of technology to performance in courses that implement ARS