Background: General surgery residents need to master the hand-sewn bowel anastomosis (HSBA) technique. However, practice opportunities outside of the operating room are rare, and commercial ...simulators are often costly. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of a new, affordable silicone small bowel simulator, made with a 3D-printed mould, as a training tool to learn this technique. Methods: This was a single-blinded pilot randomized controlled trial comparing 2 groups of 8 junior surgical residents. All participants completed a pretest using an pensive, 3D-printed simulator. Next, participants randomized to the experimental group practised the HSBA skill at home (8 sessions), while those randomized to the control group did not receive any hands-on practice opportunities. A posttest was done using the same simulator used for the pretest and practice sessions, and the transfer test was performed on an anesthetized porcine model. Pre-, post- and transfer tests were filmed and graded by a blinded evaluator based on technical skills, procedural knowledge and quality of the final product. Results: The experimental group significantly improved after practising with the model (p = 0.01), while an equivalent improvement was not noted in the control group (p = 0.07). Moreover, the experimental group's performance remained stable between the posttest and the transfer test (p = 0.95). Conclusion: Our 3D-printed simulator is an affordable and efficacious tool to teach residents the HSBA technique. It allows development of surgical skills that are transferable to an in vivo model.
Background: The advent and widespread adoption of competency-based education increased the need for objective and valid assessment tools (ATs) of operative skill. However, commonly used ATs are ...generic, limiting their ability to assess and provide feedback for proficiency in specialized procedures. Video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy (VATSL) is a complex procedure requiring knowledge and skills not captured by generic ATs. Therefore, the objective was to identify and evaluate VATSL ATs assessing surgical proficiency. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed using Embase, Google Scholar, Ovid Medline, PubMed and Web of Science (1990-2020). Conference abstracts, letters, commentaries, ATs assessing bronchoscopy, open surgery, pneumonectomy, wedge resections and ATs not evaluating technical skills were excluded. Results: Of 523 unique publications, 4 were included. One article described the development of an 8-item assessment tool (VATSAT) by iterative Delphi consensus with 31 experts but did not describe any validation. VATSAT was then modified by the same group to permit assessments of performance on a virtual reality simulator (mVATSAT). mVATSAT had high intraclass correlation coefficients for single (0.78, p < 0.001) and average (0.91, p < 0.001) measures and high reliability scores (G coefficient 0.79, Pearson coefficient 0.70, p < 0.001), but the proposed cut score had high false passing (29%) and failing (43%) rates compared with predicted performance by clinical experience. The third tool (TCAT-ARC) comprised 35 items scored on a 5-point Likert scale. TCAT-ARC was developed by iterative expert consensus and tested in simulated and clinical environments. TCAT-ARC had high discriminatory ability to differentiate novices from experts (Cronbach a 0.93, interobserver reliability 0.73, correlation with objective structured assessment of technical skills 0.68). However, a threshold score indicative of competence was not determined. The fourth used an error score to assess a porcine simulator but did not provide details regarding development or validation. Conclusion: This review identified 4 VATSL ATs evaluating technical skills: 1 has validity evidence from the clinical environment and none have a reliable competence threshold score. Further study is needed to refine VATSL ATs.
O desenvolvimento dos soft skills (SS) é uma demanda do mercado de trabalho para os profissionais da área contábil. Os professores das IES deveriam discutir um conjunto de SS, a serem exploradas no ...ensino de graduação para atender as necessidades do mercado. O objetivo deste estudo é avaliar e comparar as percepções dos professores de contabilidade do ensino superior em relação à importância, prioridade e o desenvolvimento de um conjunto de SS identificado pelo mercado de trabalho, na formação dos futuros profissionais de contabilidade. Uma amostra de 421 professores, atuantes em cursos de Ciências Contábeis, analisou um conjunto de SS percebidas como importantes pelo mercado e pela própria academia, e indicaram o aprendizado contínuo, resolução de problemas, ética, comunicação e pensamento crítico como as principais SS que os futuros profissionais deveriam desenvolver. Identificou-se um grande gap, entre importância das SS e a avaliação de seu desenvolvimento entre os estudantes. A pesquisa demonstra ainda que os docentes entendem que o desenvolvimento das SS se dá dentro e fora das salas de aula nas IES, e que o mercado teria uma leve preferência para o desenvolvimento de SS em relação as hard skills entre os estudantes. Este estudo dá suporte ao desenvolvimento de novas estratégias para que as IES juntamente com o mercado, possam preparar melhor os futuros profissionais contábeis para um ambiente competitivo e exigente.
This systematic review study synthesizes research findings pertaining to the use of augmented reality (AR) in language learning. Published research from 2014 to 2019 has been explored and specific ...inclusion and exclusion criteria have been applied resulting in 54 relevant publications. Our findings determined: (a) devices and software employed for mastering AR; languages and contexts in which AR had been applied; theoretical perspectives adopted for guiding the use of AR; the number of participants in AR activities and benefits from using AR as an educational tool in the language classroom; (b) alignment of the affordances of Augmented Reality with the KSAVE (Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes, Values, Ethics) 21st‐century skills framework; (c) future directions in AR research and practice. The main findings from this review demonstrate the popularity of mobile‐based AR for supporting vocabulary (23.9%), reading (12.7%), speaking (9.9%) writing (8.5%) or generic language skills (9.9%). Our findings also uncovered areas that merit future attention in the application of AR in language learning – for instance learning theories were not often considered in the implementation of AR. The study concludes with suggestions for future research especially in the areas of instructional design and user experience.
Lay Description
What is currently known about the subject matter
Augmented reality (AR) has become an attractive trend in language learning.
A number of reviews on AR in education have been conducted.
The state of current research on AR in language learning lacks a comprehensive review.
What their paper adds to this
The paper presents a systematic review of relevant academic literature on AR in the field of language learning.
The paper provides empirical evidence on the benefits of AR in language learning based on selected literature.
The findings revealed that the majority of AR studies are mobile‐based.
The main findings from this review demonstrate the popularity of mobile‐based AR for supporting vocabulary, reading, speaking writing or generic language skills.
Future research in AR is needed with focus on instructional design and user experience.
Implications of study findings for practitioners
The systematic review adds to the body of knowledge a firm review of recent research findings in the field.
Given the increased potential of AR, future research needs to focus on the development of under‐studied skills and competencies.
AR is an optimal means to implement communicative language learning, through continuous dialogue about augmented information.
This open access volume critically reviews a diverse body of scholarship and practice that informs the conceptualization, curriculum, teaching and measurement of life skills in education settings ...around the world. It discusses life skills as they are implemented in schools and non-formal education, providing both qualitative and quantitative evidence of when, with whom, and how life skills do or do not impact young women’s and men’s lives in various contexts. Specifically, it examines the nature and importance of life skills, and how they are taught. It looks at the synergies and differences between life skills educational programmes and the way in which they promote social and emotional learning, vocational/employment education, and health and sexuality education. Finally, it explores how life skills may be better incorporated into education and how such education can address structures and relations of power to help youth achieve desired future outcomes, and goals set out in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Life skills education has gained considerable attention by education policymakers, researchers and educators as being the sine qua non for later achievements in life. It is nearly ubiquitous in global and national education policies, including the SDGs, because life skills are regarded as essential for a diverse set of purposes: reducing poverty, achieving gender equality, promoting economic growth, addressing climate change, fostering peace and global citizenship, and creating sustainable and healthy communities. Yet, to achieve these broad goals, questions persist as to which life skills are important, who needs to learn them, how they can be taught, and how they are best measured. This book addresses these questions.
Soft (e.g. interpersonal and social) skills are receiving ever more attention with employers frequently reporting that employees lack these skills. The ‘blame game’ for these skills deficits is ...frequently directed at the individual, family or government. Scant attention has been paid to the possibility that people may possess soft skills but decide to withdraw them because of disaffection with their employer. Taking a critical perspective and drawing on three case study establishments, this article finds that some managers blamed soft skills gaps on skills withdrawal. The employee data did not, however, reveal greater employee disaffection in the establishment worst affected by soft skills gaps. Investigation of withdrawal instead revealed more about employees who had left the organizations and the propensity for employers to blame employees for soft skills gaps. The study also affirmed that organizations may be to blame for their soft skills gaps if they do not contextually integrate selection, induction and training practices with their skills needs.
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