Weber Lab

Critical online reasoning of students in medical higher education

Group Leader

Dr. Maruschka Weber

+49-(0)69-6301-84103
m.weber@med.uni-frankfurt.de

What we do

Scientific Focus

Students in medical higher education are learning to a high degree with online information sources for their studies, but relevant online content is often not made available within the framework of courses. In doing so, they have to determine which sources are reliable or correspond to a scientific background. Little is known about the key criteria and influences of students in selecting and processing online information in higher education, though. Moreover, the medical profession requires a lifelong sound ability to stay informed about new medical research findings and treatment options, a lot of which is accessible as online information.

In the framework of the DFG research group CORE (FOR 5404) we aim to identify task-solving strategies of high- and low-performing medical students solving generic as well as domain specific tasks in the open online environment. We also investigate the effects of prior domain knowledge as well as the influence of narrative features of web information on differences of task-solving strategies and COR (critical online reasoning) performances. Identifying successful strategies will allow us to generate valuable educational interventions in the future.

We are part of the newly established Research Group “CORE” funded by the DFG: https://core.uni-mainz.de as well as the international research program PLATO: https://www.plato.uni-mainz.de

Methods

We use a process mining approach that includes task solving data (e.g., internet log data) as well as eye tracking (ET) data during medical students’ task solving and additional retrospective think-aloud (RTA) protocols. By combining these process data with students’ interviews (RTA) in mediation analysis, we can find critical successful patterns and identify successful online reasoning strategies.

Members

Anika Kohmer
PhD

Research group member
a.kohmer@med.uni-frankfurt.de

Publications
- Klose, V., Kohmer, A., Demmer, I., Jochen, R. & Weber, M. (2024). Domain-Specific Critical Online Reasoning of Medical Students in Final Year of Studies (2024). In O. Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, M.-T. Nagel, V. Klose & A. Mehler (Eds.), Students’, Graduates’ and Young Professionals’ Critical Use of Online Information (pp. 135-150). Springer Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-69510-0
- Kohmer, A., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Harendza, S., Jünger, J., Espe, L., Klose, V. & Demmer, I. (2024). Promotion of the Critical-Reflective Use of Online Media Among Medical Students in Final Clinical Year. In O. Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, M.-T. Nagel, V. Klose & A. Mehler (Eds.), Students’, Graduates’ and Young Professionals’ Critical Use of Online Information (pp. 151-174). Springer Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-69510-0
- Kohmer, A., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Harendza, S. & Demmer, I. (2024). Curricular Analysis of the Promotion of Critical Online Reasoning in University Studies in Human Medicine in Germany. In O. Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, M.-T. Nagel, V. Klose & A. Mehler (Eds.), Students’, Graduates’ and Young Professionals’ Critical Use of Online Information (pp. 113-133). Springer Cham.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-69510-0
- Roeper, J., Reichert-Schlax, J., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Klose, V., Weber, M. & Nagel, M-T.(2022). Patterns of Domain-Specific Learning Among Medical Undergraduate Students in Relation to Confidence in Their Physiology Knowledge: Insights From a Pre–post Study. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article 562211.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.562211
- Nagel, M. T., Reichert-Schlax, J., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Klose, V., Weber, M., & Roeper, J. (2021). The relationship between medical students’ media use and learning progress. Studies in Higher Education, 46(10), 2063–2073. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2021.1953334
- Schmidt, S., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Roeper, J., Klose, V., Weber, M., Bültmann, A. K., & Brückner, S. (2020). Undergraduate students’ critical online reasoning – Process mining analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, Article 576273. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.576273