Near-peer teaching in anatomical education – our own experiences with students as teachers

Abstract The anatomical knowledge that students must assimilate is very extensive and necessary to master thoroughly in a relatively short period. To address the difficulties associated with learning anatomy, we decided to preliminarily investigate the method of near-peer teaching (NPT) to improve learning and preparation for exams. The main aim of our study was to determine students’ attitudes toward their own knowledge in the context of being taught by peers. An additional important aspect of the project was to evaluate the significance of this teaching method in the context of effective anatomy learning and to verify the potential for integrating a new form of peer assistance into everyday education. We initiated a series of lectures conducted by members of our student scientific club to prepare students for their exams. After each lecture, participants were asked to complete a voluntary survey to gather their opinions on their satisfaction with the sessions. The sessions were rated as helpful by 94.8% of respondents, with 54% stating that the sessions reduced their anxiety before the upcoming exam. However, 26.3% felt that the sessions increased their anxiety. The sessions boosted the self-esteem of 34.7% of respondents and lowered it to 25.4%, while the rest reported no change. As many as 96.1% of respondents would recommend such sessions to other students. Near-peer teaching appears to be an effective method of supporting the assimilation of material outside of regular classes. The results suggest that NPT can enhance students’ self-assessment of their knowledge.