Meme-Based Learning in Neuroanatomy: A Comparative Study on Effectiveness, Gender, and Student Performance Levels

Generation Z has different requirements, problems, expectations, and attitudes that they bring into the educational environment. Teachers have unprecedented challenges in addressing their needs and aspirations. Gamification involves integrating game-like elements into an existing educational framework. Rather than being a standalone teaching method, it serves as an instructional design approach. In this research, we investigated the impact of a meme-based approach in teaching various neuroanatomy topics and compared its effectiveness with traditional methods. In addition, we explored whether gender differences or students' academic levels influence their learning outcomes. The present research was conducted with third-year medical students enrolled in the neuroscience module at the College of Medicine, AlMaarefa University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from September to December 2023, during the academic year 2023-2024. Students were instructed to create memes to aid in the comprehension and retention of anatomical facts and structures throughout the course. After each exam, we divide the questions into meme-related and non-meme-related categories. We then use the exam item analysis to compare the total student responses to the questions in the two categories, assess their performance, and compare the results between the male and female sections. Both male and female students showed significant improvement in their performance when responding to questions about meme-based material. Among high-achieving students, males showed a significant improvement in performance; however, the improvement among girls did not reach statistical significance. Conversely, both male and female students in the lower-performing group exhibited considerable improvements when interacting with meme-augmented topics. In conclusion, a meme-based approach significantly improved students' grades compared to the traditional approach; its effect was more pronounced among lower achievers and males. Although our findings suggest that male students may gain a greater advantage from this approach, the evidence for a gender-based moderating effect remains preliminary. The observed patterns require verification through larger, multicenter studies.