Anatomical canasta: a pedagogical game for teaching human anatomy

Abstract

Introduction: Human anatomy is still a subject that teachers have the most difficulty in breaking with the traditional teaching model. The extensive content, which must be memorized in a short period of time, makes teaching monotonous and uninteresting from the students' point of view. The game in the classroom comes in as a support tool, in order to make the teaching process dynamic, fun, and enjoyable. Objective: This article had as objectives the development and evaluation of a pedagogical game to support the learning of muscles and joints involved in shoulder movements, for undergraduate students in the health area. Methodology: This is an experience report with a qualitative and quantitative approach. The data were generated through an anonymous and voluntary online questionnaire, with nine closed and three open questions, as well as field notes written by the teacher. Content analysis was used for the open-ended questions and the calculation of Mean Ranking for closed-ended questions on a Likert Scale. A total of 120 students participated in the research. A deck of cards was developed, with rules adapted from the traditional card game called "Canasta” in which students should form a sequence with the cards of the muscles of each joint movement. Results/Conclusion: The results indicated that the "Anatomical Canasta" card game proved to be a motivating and promising strategy for anatomy learning, providing a playful, relaxed and fun class, and was positively evaluated by most participants.