1. Future education of animal
and veterinary students: skills
Liam A. Sinclair & Jayne Powles
Harper Adams University College

2. Outline of Presentation
• Employment market for animal and
veterinary skills
• Review of current provision of animal and
veterinary courses
• Approaches to teaching animal and
veterinary related courses with an
emphasis on skills

3. Employment market for Animal/Vet students
350
300
250
Employment (000)
200
150
100
50
0
Agricultural Animal care Veterinary Game + Equine Veterinary Feed Animal
livestock nursing wildlife industry Techn
Data derived from Feed Statistics (2009), Lantra (2010); IDBR (2008); Defra (2008)

4. Undergraduate provision in England
6000
5000
• Recent increase in Animal Science
4000
related courses Anim Sci
3000
Agric
• Agric livestock = dominated by 2000 Vet Pre-Clin
Vet Clin
FEC’s (HEFCE 2007) 1000
0
• Animal care & equine have a
greater HE delivery (HEFCE 2007) HESA returns (2010)
80
70
• Fastest growing sector = FEC’s
60
providing foundation degrees
50
FEC's
40
• In HE skills arena, migration of 30
Franchised FEC's
HEI
people from rural employment 20
following education. 10
0
Agric Animal Equine Sector
Livestock Care average
Review of provision for land-based subjects (2007)

5. Qualification level: Agric livestock
- Distinction between skills needed 25
by industry and how these skills are
recognised by government (i.e. 20
qualifications).
% of work force
15
Industry
- Majority of livestock employers % UK
10
expect employees to gain skills “on
the job” 5
- Few HE courses formally teach 0
skills; some courses include a None Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4+ Lantra (2010)
placement year
- 75% of vets learn practical skills at Univ; 96% stated they learned their skills via
extramural activities
- 76% of veterinary graduates stated “insufficient practical instruction, especially
surgery” (Fitzpatrick & Mellor, 2003)

6. Veterinary student satisfaction: practicals
Year 6
Year 5
V. poor
Year 4
Poor
Avg
Good
Year 3
V. Good
Year 2
Year 1
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

7. What skills do new graduates need?
Generic (domain general) Skills
• Application of knowledge
• Communication/team work
• Problem solving/critical thinking
• Reflective judgement
Animal and Veterinary course skills (domain specific)
• Animal management, husbandry, handling
• Laboratory/clinical skills
• People and business management/ethical practice
Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) can be used to assess
learning styles (Watkin et al., 1971)
GEFT scores are based on locating simple shapes within complex
figures

8. Effective teaching of skills
“Scientists are inherently and appropriately sceptical, so data
demonstrating that teaching differently will result in greater
learning must be part of any effort to convince them to change
their practices”
Carl Wieman: Nobel Prize in Physics (2001)
• Didactic lecture is most common but least effective method
• Superiority of novel pedagogies supported by inexpensive
technologies are supported by cognitive psychology
research (Wieman 2007)
• Common practice does not equal good practice

9. Support and Motivation
Scaffolding for success
Construct knowledge
“the most important factor influencing
learning is what the learner already
knows” Ausubel 1963
“teach concepts in terms of everyday
understanding” Vygotsky (1978) 90
80
%Farming Background
70
60
50 Agricuture
40 Animals/Vet Nursing
30
20
10
0
2007 2008 2009 2010

10. Bloom’s (Anderson) taxonomy
Reasoning:
Deep learning
Reproducing:
Surface learning
• Training for technicians may cover knowledge, comprehension and
application, but not concern itself with analysis and above
• Full professional training may be expected to include this and synthesis
and evaluation as well

11. Teaching approach and student learning
• "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand." (Confucius 551-479
BC) . This quote indicates that from the early ages people had different learning
preferences.
• The VARK model focuses on an individual and places the learner into one of four
categories: Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic. Instructor should recognise
stimuli and preference for learning/ processing new material (Dunn & Dunn 1993)
• Herrmann’s (1996) whole brain model (left brain/right brain) divides preferred
styles of learning into theorist or organiser (both left brain) or innovator or
humanitarian (both right brain) Petty 2006 90
80
75% theorists are Males 70
60
75% humanitarians are Females
% Male
50 Agriculture
40 Animals/Vet Nursing
30
20
10
0
2007 2008 2009 2010

12. Can you find Wally? Field Independent

13. Teaching approach and student learning
Field-dependent: Field-independent:
- Difficulty when several steps in - Enjoy several steps in task
tasks, not analytical - Good at analytical problem solving
- Experience difficulty in problem
- Prefer an enquiry approach to
solving situations
learning
- Prefer external goals
- Prefer collaboration and answers
- Dislike collaboration
provided - Poor social skills
- Enjoy competition
Dairy Science Animal Science
Poultry Science Pre-veterinary
Nutrition No effect of age or sex
No effect of age or sex Suburban background
Rural background
Hoover & Marshall (1998)

14. Teaching approach and student learning
• Instructor should recognize stimuli and preference for learning/ processing
new material. This model focuses on an individual and places the learner
into one of four categories:
(Dunn & Dunn 1993)
• Herrmann’s (1996) whole brain model (left brain/right brain) divides
preferred styles of learning into theorist or organiser (both left brain) or
innovator or humanitarian (both right brain) Petty 2006
• Use a range of activities which suit the different learning styles suggested
by these models and help students to develop their skills in the areas in
which they are initially less comfortable (Coffield et al 2004a)

15. Teaching approach and student learning
Student satisfaction
Field dependent
• Does matching teaching style to 4.2
student learning style improve 4.1
performance in animal related skills? 4.0
3.9
3.8
• Pig practical classes evaluated for 3.7
3.6
field dependant, independent or 3.5
mixed teaching style (Honeyman & Miller 3.4
1998) Field-independent Combination Field-dependent
Field independent
• Students preferred teaching style 4.2
that matched their learning style 4.1
4.0
3.9
3.8
3.7
3.6
3.5
3.4
Field-independent Combination Field-dependent

16. Teaching approach and student learning
Student achievement
Field dependent
• Does matching teaching style to 95
student learning style improve
90
performance in animal related skills?
85
80
• Teaching style makes little difference 75
to field-independent learners, but 70
does influence field-dependent 65
Field-independent Combination Field-dependent
learners
• Higher levels of cognitive effort Field independent
95
and gains in achievement with a
90
mixed approach
85
80
75
70
65
Field-independent Combination Field-dependent

17. Communication skills
• Communication problems contribute
120
to > 80% of cases dealt with by Veterinary
Defence Society 100
A
80
• Regarded by the RCVS as a core B
Mean mark
C
professional competence 60
40
3 groups:
20
A = no formal training 0
Building Providing Aiding recall
B = 3 hours group study observing and relationship information
discussing videoed scenarios
C = 6 hours of small groups involving Latham & Morris (2007)
discussion, videoed scenarios and role-
play actors with opportunity to repeat &
rehearse

18. Communication skills
• Communication problems contribute
120
to > 80% of cases dealt with by Veterinary
Defence Society 100
A
80
• Regarded by the RCVS as a core B
Mean mark
C
professional competence 60
40
3 groups:
20
A = no formal training 0
Building Providing Aiding recall
B = 3 hours group study observing and relationship information
discussing videoed scenarios
C = 6 hours of small groups involving Latham & Morris (2007)
discussion, videoed scenarios and role-
play actors with opportunity to repeat &
rehearse

19. Communication skills
• Communication problems contribute
120
to > 80% of cases dealt with by Veterinary
Defence Society 100
A
80
• Regarded by the RCVS as a core B
Mean mark
C
professional competence 60
40
3 groups:
20
A = no formal training 0
Building Providing Aiding recall
B = 3 hours group study observing and relationship information
discussing videoed scenarios
C = 6 hours of small groups involving Latham & Morris (2007)
discussion, videoed scenarios and role-
play actors with opportunity to repeat &
rehearse

20. Problem Based Learning
Students identify learning objectives from a case/problem
Focus is on active learners – develops transferable skills
It is PROBLEM-Based Learning
Not subject based – students identify learning
It is Problem-BASED Learning
Aim not to solve problem: emphasis on gaps in knolwedge
and skills and how to remedy
It is Problem-Based LEARNING
Not teaching – students learn, tutors facilitate

21. Critical interactive thinking exercises
In Undergraduate Reproductive Physiology
Problem solving question given to class
100
Students prepared composition
90
80
70
Percent of students
Small group discussions
60
50
40
Large class discussion
30
20
10
Activity greatly enhanced
0
Critical Thinking Skills and Learning Greatly Somewhat Did not enhance
enhanced enhanced
Peters et al, 2002

22. Active learning
The didactic lecture is ineffective for student learning
(Bligh,1998) and rated low by students (Sander et al, 2000)
Demonstrations/equipment/models Personal Response Systems
provide hands-on experience demand interactivity from all
students and provide feedback on
• Active learning develops deep individual conceptions and skills
understanding (Biggs, 2003)
• reinforce skills
Communicubes (Bostock et al 2006)

23. Project-based learning lab practicals
• Replace traditional “recipe-style” lab practical's with mini-research
projects.
• Students given a contextualised problem which they must solve in a
team.
Experimental skills
Laboratory manipulation, experimental observation, equipment
expertise.
Data Handling Skills
Data collection, processing and analysis, interpretation
Generic/Transferable Skills
Problem solving, team work, Scientific method/approach,
communication
McDonnell et al (2007)

24. Integration of E-learning Assessment of laboratory skills
Discussion boards, chat rooms
Open ended problems
Self assessment quizzes
Simulations and animations
Pictures and videos
Powles, 2010

25. Professional mentality – acquiring and maintaining skills for
lifelong learning
Competence in a skill
Clinical data
Literature
Self-directed
learning
Experimental learning cycle (Kolb,1984)

26. Summary
• Increasing range of employment for animal based students and
potential shortfall in several areas
• Practical skills traditionally “taught on the job” with little formal
recognition within Higher Education
• Using a range of activities which suit different learning styles help
students to develop their skills in the areas in which they are
initially less comfortable (Coffield et al 2004a and 2004b)
• Building on prior knowledge and relating teaching to practical
examples/scenarios is critical.