CARBGAME (CArd & Board GAmes in Medical Education) — A Gamification Innovation in Physiology Education to Promote Active and Team- Based Learning
Authors: Surapaneni Krishna Mohan 
Published: May 2024

Background & Objectives: Traditional physiological education predominantly relies on lecture-based teaching, which can be insuffcient for effectively engaging students and preparing them for the ever- evolving and collaborative healthcare landscape. Gamification offers a promising alternative to bridge this educational gap. Gamification is emerging as an active learning innovation in medical education to enhance student engagement and promote life-long learning in a unique and collaborative environment. The CARBGAME - CArd & Board GAmes in Medical Education was introduced and evaluated for its effectiveness in enhancing the active learning, application, sharing and assessment of knowledge in teams in cardiovascular physiology via gamification context. Methods: This mixed-method study involved 150 Phase I MBBS students. Prior to the game, students completed a pre-test with 20 multiple-choice questions and were divided into 25 small groups to compete in the board game designed for Cardiovascular Physiology. The students took turns throwing the dice and answering the questions on the game board and cards to continue moving forward. The first team to reach 100 and solve the case-based question was deemed the winner. Following the Board game, the post-test was conducted to evaluate the improvement in knowledge. Then, the students evaluated the effectiveness of CARBGAME- Cardiovascular Physiology using a 33-item questionnaire on a 5-point Likert scale. The feedback regarding CARBGAME- Cardiovascular Physiology was obtained on a 10-point rating scale and for qualitative analysis, students’ and faculties’ perceptions was recorded in in-depth small group interviews. All data were collected anonymous. The continuous variables' Mean and Standard Deviation (SD) were descriptively analyzed using univariate statistics, and the T-test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to examine the differences. The Krushkall Wallis test and the Mann-Whitney U test were used to find variations in the non-normal distribution. The statistical package used was SPSS, version 17, developed by SPSS Inc. USA for Microsoft Windows. A P value of less than 0.05 was deemed significant. Results: Most of the students were multimodal (40%) and Kinaesthetic (33%) learners. A highly significant improvement in knowledge was evident with the pre-test score of 6.5 (1.1) (Mean & Standard Deviation) to 15.3 (1.7) in the post-test with a p-value less than 0.0001. CARBGAME has received exceptional positive responses from students in terms of creating fun (99%), relevant content (94.5%), consistency in rules (96.4%), less complexity (86.5%), active discovery (98.39%), motivation (96.4%), meaningful (99%) and experiential learning (97.3%), social learning (96.4%), fair time period (85.%6), sustainability (90%), effective feedback (95.5%), low stakes method (98.2%), reinforcing learning (96.4%), assessing knowledge (99%), competition (92.8%), collaborative learning (98.2%) and sense of accomplishment (96.39%). All the students and faculties have perceived and rated CARBGAME highly positively. Conclusion: The CARBGAME for cardiovascular physiology innovation has not only met pedagogical ideals but also sparked a transformation in medical education. By emphasizing individualization, feedback, active learning, motivation, social interaction, scaffolding, transfer of knowledge, and effective assessment, this dynamic approach resonates with both faculties and students. The enthusiastic responses from both faculty and students signify an imperative shift in the conventional medical curriculum. These responses highlight the exigent need to introduce innovative elements, such as educational games, to enhance student engagement and cultivate more profound and lasting learning experiences within physiology education. By demonstrating that gamified learning can be a driving force for change in physiology and medical education, this innovation paves the way for a more adaptable, engaging, and effective approach for optimising the learning experience of learners.

Sources of Funding: This study did not recieve funding in any form Conflict of Interest: None to declare.

This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.