Using Wikis and Peer Evaluation to Teach Medical Students How to Find and Assess Evidence Based Resources: A Pilot Study

Abstract

During their first two years at Leicester Medical School, undergraduate students observe two patients and submit a 10,000 word dissertation on the medical condition, treatment, and social context of the patient. To support this, in the students' second semester, Information Librarians at the University of Leicester run embedded teaching sessions showing the students how to find information for good medical evidence, using a range of online databases and information resources.

Wikis are web 2.0 tools which facilitate group work, sharing, and reflection. Information librarians experimented with using a wiki and peer evaluation to engage the students in the learning process. This article discusses how the wiki was created, and the issues encountered. It also explains the students' assignment and how peer evaluation was integrated into the teaching session.

The results are compared with another cohort of students who were learning the same information without using a wiki or any peer evaluation. This paper reflects on the elements that were successful, changes that can be made in the future, and how the students responded to this method of learning.

Keywords:

• wiki
• peer evaluation
• medical librarians
• medical students