Effectiveness of mind mapping as compared to didactic lectures for teaching anatomy among first-year medical students – A randomized control study

Several methods have been suggested to encourage greater student participation during lectures. Mind mapping is a learning tool that uses pictorial representations of concepts and their relationships. The objectives of this study were to compare the knowledge acquisition in anatomy and perceptions between didactic lectures and mind mapping among first year students at a medical college in India. First year undergraduate medical students (n=60 in one batch and n=149 in the next batch) were randomly divided into two groups which received either the mind-mapping intervention or a didactic lecture. Eight topics were covered in such a manner. After each topic, the groups crossed over and received the alternate intervention. Each intervention was followed by a ten-item single-best-response multiple-choice knowledge test. The perceptions of students were obtained using a questionnaire which had both quantitative and qualitative components. The data were summarized using means and standard deviations. Group differences were estimated using the independent sample T test. The mean scores on the multiple-choice-questions (MCQ) test were significantly higher after mind-mapping compared to didactic lectures in seven out of eight sessions. The perceptions of the students about mind mapping were largely positive, especially in relation to integration and interest. One drawback mentioned about the mind-mapping method was that it was relatively time-consuming. Mind mapping resulted in significantly greater knowledge acquisition as compared to didactic lectures, and was well received by the students. It has the potential to be used more widely in anatomy education.