Introduction In 2020, as classroom environments shifted abruptly from in-person offerings to largely Zoom-mediated learning spaces in response to COVID-19 restrictions, educators were challenged to engage students behind the box. Moreover, the unplanned and sustained lack of physical classroom interaction disrupted the learning community, a factor that contributes to higher student satisfaction and achievement. Our objective was to engage students with their peers and class material in the virtual learning environment. Methods: Zoom was used to deliver two distinct classroom events: a virtual showcase in an undergraduate systems-based anatomy course and a student symposium on sociocultural influences on gastrointestinal (GI) diseases and conditions in a second-year integrated medical GI & Nutrition course. The undergraduate virtual showcase featured abstract art of neurodegenerative diseases that correlated with topics in nervous system anatomy. Students used a variety of media, such as canvas paintings, sketches, and clay molds, to communicate the anatomy relevant to their disease topic and their interpretation of the effects of this disease on the patient and their families. During the virtual showcase, students viewed a rotating slide-show of the work of their peers and completed a reflection assignment. For the second project, students were organized into small groups of 5 or 6 and asked to interview multiple stakeholders involved in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of a disease of their choosing within predetermined categories, such as oral/pharyngeal health or chronic liver disease. Each student interviewed a person with a unique narrative related to the disease and the group creatively synthesized their findings. For example, one group role-played the experience of the patient from initial diagnosis of colon cancer with their doctor to the follow-up with the healthcare team and support groups. They presented perspectives from a patient, physician, family caretaker, support therapist, dietician, and colon cancer researcher. Results: The top 30 (of 135) art submissions were featured in an undergraduate anatomy showcase on Zoom. Student feedback was mostly positive, with 64% (n=135) indicating strongly agree (39%) or agree (25%) when asked if they enjoyed opportunities to be creative in the anatomy classroom. Additional artforms were requested by students. The student symposium was designed as a two-hour mini-conference with 206 medical students organized into 36 groups. Six groups presented concurrently every 20 minutes among six different Zoom accounts. Additionally, students signed up to attend five peer presentations. Preliminary feedback revealed several themes including a deeper appreciation of GI anatomy and the lived experience of the patient, the importance of supportive healthcare roles in patient treatment (e.g. dieticians, caregivers, community support), and pride in their peers’ creative presentations.Conclusions: These projects highlight ways to foster a thriving learning community in a virtual environment. During a particularly difficult period for student engagement these activities provided students with connections to the lecture content, to each other as peers, and to their wider communities.
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