Enhancing study motivation and efficacy among first-year students using minute papers in the interdisciplinary subject of Yakugaku nyumon

Abstract

Active learning in higher education is important for learning efficacy and motivation. Accordingly, lectures that integrate strategies toward active learning, such as minute papers, debates, and collaborative learning, have become widely adopted. Minute papers facilitate communication among both teachers and students, and can be used as a tool for reviewing lectures. In the present study, we examined the effect of using minute papers on learning efficacy and motivation. To enhance the curriculum of the interdisciplinary course Yakugaku Nyumon, which consists of an omnibus lecture series and problem-based learning, minute papers with exercises were provided to applicants. In a follow-up questionnaire, students who used minute papers (S-USE) responded that they had a better understanding of the relationships, ranging from basic to clinical subject matter, than students who did not use such papers (S-NON). Using the Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction (ARCS) model questionnaire to measure study motivation, S-USE scored higher for some questionnaires than S-NON. This finding indicates that minute papers promoted learning motivation among students taking the Yakugaku Nyumon course. In regular examinations, the average score of S-USE was also statistically higher than that of S-NON. These results demonstrate that minute papers possibly encouraged students to actively review the lectures, thereby increasing both learning efficacy and motivation. This study shows that through promoting active, self-learning, minute papers are suitable for improving curricular strategies in subjects that rely on passive learning methods.