The Implementation of Peer-Reflection to Improve Retakers’ Achievement in National Medical Students Examination

INTRODUCTION: Faculty of medicine plays a role to support the students’ success in passing national exit exam through mentorship. Peer-reflection evaluates the students’ learning process. We aimed to analyze the impact of peer-reflection to change the students’ learning attitude and improve national exam score. METHODS: Nine test-retaker students participated in mentorship program for three months. They took two parts of faculty-level examination. After the 1st and the 2nd part of faculty exam, there were peer-reflections I and II that argued about the characters, strengths and weaknesses, suggestions. Then, they did self-reflection to conduct responses about the mentorship including the impact of peers’ input and finally took national exam. The examination score before and after peer-reflection were compared. We analyzed the statement of reflection by documents and content analysis. The progress of examination score was analyzed descriptively. RESULTS: The students objectively understood the strengths and weaknesses of their way of learning, and then implemented the peers’ advices. Peer-reflection method provided a feeling of same purpose, then developed ways of learning that promoted them to be higher motivated. Finally, 6 of 9 students passed the exam. DISCUSSION: Suggestions given by peers would be memorable and powerfully changed motivation. Peer-reflection explored non-academic problems that determined the pattern and the way of how students learned.