Students' Perception of Pedagogical Approaches to an Occupation-Based Anatomy Course in Occupational Therapy

There is a need to develop an anatomy course with contemporary pedagogy that is consistent with the core of the occupational therapy profession. The purpose of this study was to examine students' perception of a blended learning pedagogy applied to an occupation-based anatomy course compared to a traditionally delivered anatomy course using cadaver lab for entry-level doctoral occupational therapy students at a private university in the Pacific Northwest region. A retrospective, nonrandomized, twogroup, post-test only design with data gathered at the completion of each course was used. One student cohort received the occupation-based anatomy course with a traditional in-person learning format and the other received the course guided by the universal design, blended learning format. The primary outcomes were students' course performance and perception of the course. At the completion of the course, both student cohorts had equivalent course performance. Compared to those who received the traditional format, the blended learning format cohort yielded significantly higher scores in 3 out of 5 categories of the course evaluation, including syllabus design, contribution of course content to their needs as a professional, and assessment methods that reflected their learning. The study results suggest that the occupation-based anatomy course guided by a contemporary pedagogical approach is equal to traditional methods in anatomical knowledge acquisition but statistically superior in meeting students' perceived needs as professionals and reflecting their learning.