Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 13, 2026
Project-Based Learning Guidelines for Health Sciences Students: An Analysis with Data Mining and Qualitative Techniques
Published on: December 9, 2022
Debate activities in U.S. pharmacy education: A scoping review
Berkley R Freund1, Charlotte Farris2, Nephy Samuel2
1Department of Pharmacy Practice, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Jerry H. Hodge School of Pharmacy, 1300 Coulter Street, Amarillo, TX 79106, United States.
Background:
Debates have emerged as an active learning strategy in pharmacy education, aiming to enhance critical thinking, communication, engagement, and knowledge acquisition. This review aims to broadly identify and describe debate activities implemented in U.S. Doctor of Pharmacy programs, characterize their design and assessment methods, summarize reported effectiveness on learning and skill development, and identify themes and gaps to inform best practices.
Methods:
A scoping review identified 13 studies conducted in U.S. pharmacy programs that integrated debate activities. Most were implemented in third- and fourth-year coursework, frequently using Lincoln-Douglas or modified formats. Outcomes evaluated included student confidence, skill development, engagement, and knowledge retention, assessed through subjective and objective measures.
Results:
Students consistently reported that debates strengthened confidence in critical thinking, analytical reasoning, and oral communication. Several studies demonstrated significant knowledge gains from pre- to post-debate; however, when compared with alternative methods such as lectures or Journal Clubs, debates were generally non-inferior for knowledge retention. Students valued debates for their engaging format and perceived skill-building benefits. Reported challenges included time demands, logistical complexity, and variability in assessment methods. The lack of standardized evaluation tools limited the ability to draw definitive conclusions about effectiveness.
Implications:
Debates represent a flexible and engaging pedagogical approach with potential to foster higher-order skills and enhance student engagement in pharmacy curricula. Current evidence, however, relies heavily on self-reported outcomes and limited objective measures. Future research should emphasize standardized implementation, development of reliable assessment instruments, and rigorous comparisons with other instructional strategies to clarify the educational impact of debates in pharmacy education.
Related Concept Videos
01:26Drug Administration and Therapy Phases: Overview
The pharmaceutical phase focuses on leveraging the physicochemical properties of the drug to design and manufacture an effective product. Variants include orally administered tablets or capsules, topical creams or ointments, and parenteral-delivery solutions or emulsions.
The pharmacokinetic phase...
01:03Drug Control Governance: Regulatory Bodies and Their Impact
01:02Prescription, Nonprescription and Orphan Drugs
The misuse and addiction to prescription drugs is a growing problem that can affect people of all age groups, specifically teenagers. This can happen when prescription medications are used in ways not intended by the prescriber, such as taking someone else's prescription or using medication for...
01:28Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics: Overview
01:19Pharmacovigilance
This process, termed pharmacovigilance, aims to detect, evaluate, and minimize harmful effects related to medication use. The data collection for pharmacovigilance depends on spontaneous reporting systems, where healthcare professionals or patients voluntarily report suspected ADRs.
In some cases, there...
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...