Discourse about higher education on Twitter in early phases of COVID-19: A crisis management social network analysis.

The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic brought changes and efforts for adaption to the new environment in every industry, including higher education. The present study, drawing on crisis management theory as a framework, aimed to understand information and communication sharing behaviors of the higher education community during the pandemic by exploring patterns and discourse on social media. Such analysis provides insight into how information is gained, shared, and used. Tweets including the hashtag #highered were retrieved at five time points in March and August 2020-M1 (retrieved on March 3), M2 (March 17), A1 (August 4), A2 (August 11), and A3 (August 18). Using a social network analysis tool, NodeXL, the collected tweets were analyzed by social network structure, topic, and influencer. Results showed that #highered was used widely in the early stages of the pandemic. The relevant conversation rapidly evolved, as did the prominent influencers. Over time, the conversation centered on the pandemic, the implications of the sudden shift to online learning, and then the subsequent effect on universities, students, faculty, and staff. A crisis preparation phase continued through August 2020, but drivers of information transitioned from well-known news outlets prior to the pandemic to individuals directly experiencing the pandemic. Future research should analyze the validity of information shared by individuals during key decision points of the pandemic and whether higher education is susceptible to the growing spread of disinformation through social media when formulating policy. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10639-023-11590-2.

Measuring Post-training Activities Following a Veterinary Teaching Workshop in East Africa.

A teaching workshop was delivered for faculty members of East African colleges of veterinary medicine to foster teaching development and reflection. The goal was for participants to use knowledge gained to improve teaching skills. The approach was to "train the trainer" so attendees could transfer new knowledge to colleagues at their institutions. Techniques were used to increase the likelihood that participants would apply the training. A culturally responsive survey was developed to assess training transfer 1 year later. Pilot survey results suggest that participants applied what they learned and shared with colleagues largely due to peer and supervisor support. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-021-01428-2.

Veterinary Student Self-Assessment of Basic Surgical Skills as an Experiential Learning Tool.

Mastery of basic skills is critical for surgical training. Such training is best obtained by experiential learning, which requires an element of self-reflection. Self-reflection is not always an automatic process, however; guidance may be required. This article sought to determine whether guided self-assessment would help facilitate student mastery of learned skills in a veterinary basic surgery course. The course consisted of 18 lectures and eight laboratories. Students were provided with written notes and presentation slides before the course. At the end of each lab, students completed a self-assessment of their skills. Skills were practiced in multiple labs; at the end of the course, each student was given a graded, practical examination to evaluate skills mastery. Statistical analysis was performed to compare students' mean self-assessment over the eight labs and to determine whether self-assessment scores correlated with examination grades. Results from 80 students were included. Students' overall self-assessments improved significantly from lab 1 to lab 8, and their self-assessment of two specific skills (closed gloving and simple continuous suture pattern) also improved. Students' self-assessments after the eighth lab were predictive of their practical exam scores. These results suggest guided reflection in the form of self-assessment could help facilitate student mastery of basic surgery skills. Correlation between self-assessment and practical examination results suggests instructors may use these self-assessments to detect students who need extra practice or instruction.

Correlation of Mock Board Examination Scores During Anatomic Pathology Residency Training with Performance on the Certifying Examination.

Mock board exams are common in residency programs across many disciplines. However, the value of mock board results in predicting success on the actual certifying examination is largely anecdotal and undocumented. The University of Tennessee anatomic pathology residency program has a long history of giving mock board exams twice a year during the course of the 3-year diagnostic training program. The mock exams give residents a sense of the types of questions that may appear on the actual certifying examination. The resulting scores serve to help identify improvement areas to focus additional study. In addition, by providing residents the mental and physical experiences designed to mimic the test day, we hope to better prepare these trainees for optimal performance on the certifying examination. This study correlated mock board results of 16 anatomic pathology residents, from July 2006 through January 2016, with their subsequent performance on the certifying exam. The results of these biannual exams were significantly correlated (p < .001) with results for the American College of Veterinary Pathologists Certifying Examination.