Introduction to histology through the use of familiar objects: innovative teaching module

To introduce first-year medical students to fundamental concepts in histology and facilitate interpretation of two-dimensional images in the context of the three-dimensional nature of the object, a simple teaching module consisting of active exercises plus group discussions, using familiar objects from everyday use, was planned. In the process of mentally reconstructing sections through familiar objects, and representing in diagrams the appearance of these sections, students learned the use of common histology terms; the value of studying sections in series and at different planes; and spatial relationships of a) a nucleus within a cell, and b) tissue components within solid and hollow organs. Their understanding of these concepts was found to be good when evaluated by a multiple-choice-questions test, suggesting that this is an effective method for introducing beginners to fundamentals of histology.