Challenges and solutions in teaching endocrinology: Insights from Moroccan university students

Abstract

The aim of this study is to understand the constraints or obstacles that Moroccan students encounter in learning endocrinology. In carrying out this research, students from various Moroccan academic institutions enrolled in various life and earth sciences departments and in other departments that taught endocrinology cooperated. To obtain lists of content units or chapters in endocrinology that may be problematic to learn, we used an idea generation method to obtain specific views on the difficulties and obstacles learners encounter when teaching and learning endocrinology. This technique is called TGN or nominal group technique. The TGN findings were used to create an online questionnaire on Google Forms. The results revealed that Moroccan students face various obstacles in their learning of endocrinology, such as the lack of teaching hours, the absence of practical work and the complexity of the course content. In addition, the study showed that the limited use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in the classroom complicates students' understanding of the subject. In addition, the students surveyed encountered difficulties in assimilating several key concepts of endocrinology relating to: Cell signaling and communication; Hormonal regulation; Modes of signal transmission; Mechanisms of hormonal action.