Nursing Education ResearchNCT07601984
World Café Teaching on Pharmacology Academic Performance and Perceived Self-Regulated Learning Among Nursing Students
A study testing World Café Teaching Method and Traditional Lecture Method in people with Nursing Education Research, run by Ying Guo at 1 site in China.
Trial summary
This exploratory two-round cluster-randomised trial examined the World Café teaching method, a structured participatory approach, in pharmacology education for third-year undergraduate nursing students. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 23 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Nursing Education Research
- What is being tested?
- World Café Teaching Method and Traditional Lecture Method
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 890 participants
- Where
- 1 siteChina
- Study dates
- 1 Mar 2023to 30 Jul 2024
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 23 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult
Who may be able to join
- Third-year undergraduate nursing students at Kunming Medical University
- Enrolled in the pharmacology course during the study semester (March-July 2023 or March-July 2024)
- Willing to participate and provided informed consent
Who cannot join
- Students who did not complete the pharmacology course or did not take the final examination
- Students who did not provide informed consent
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
Official title: The World Café Teaching Method and Pharmacology Academic Performance Among Nursing Students: An Exploratory Two-Round Cluster Randomised Trial With Perceived Self-Regulated Learning Outcomes
This exploratory two-round cluster-randomised trial examined the World Café teaching method, a structured participatory approach, in pharmacology education for third-year undergraduate nursing students. The study was designed to assess whether the World Café method, compared with traditional lecture-based instruction, was associated with pharmacology final examination performance-including the total examination score (primary outcome), accurate knowledge identification and discrimination, and knowledge integration, reasoning and clinical decision-making (secondary/exploratory outcomes)-and with students' perceptions of teaching and perceived benefits for self-regulated learning (SRL), measured by self-developed questionnaires. The trial was exploratory and was not powered to confirm a treatment effect. Eight classes were randomised across two rounds (four classes per round; three control classes and one experimental class per round). The experimental classes received World Café case-discussion integrated into the same core pharmacology content, while control classes received traditional lectures. The primary outcome was analysed with linear mixed models with class as a random intercept, with small-sample correction and a within-round exact permutation test. Questionnaires were administered in the experimental group only.
Read the detailed description
This exploratory two-round cluster-randomised trial was conducted at Kunming Medical University during two consecutive academic years (March-July 2023 and March-July 2024). Classes were the unit of randomisation; within each round, four intact classes were randomised 3:1 to control or experimental arms. Randomisation was performed separately within each round by an independent statistician using computer-generated random numbers (SPSS 19), and the allocation sequence was concealed from teaching staff and participants until assignment. Because the intervention was educational, participants and instructors were not blinded; final examination papers were randomly assigned for marking, and both marking and data analysis were performed blinded to group allocation. The study was exploratory and was not powered to confirm a treatment effect: the design-stage sample size calculation assumed an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.01, whereas the observed ICC was 0.100 in Round 1 and 0.015 in Round 2, and the final sample of 890 students was below the ICC-adjusted target. The primary outcome was analysed with linear mixed models (treatment arm as a fixed effect, class as a random intercept, restricted maximum likelihood), fitted separately by round and pooled with round as a fixed effect; because only four classes were randomised per round, P values and confidence intervals were based on a t reference distribution with degrees of freedom equal to the number of randomised clusters minus the number of estimated fixed effects, and a parametric bootstrap was used to check the adequacy of this correction. An exact within-round permutation test was used as a randomisation-based sensitivity analysis; with four classes per round, the minimum attainable two-sided P value is 0.125. Baseline comparability was assessed descriptively using students' final examination score from the prerequisite Physiology course. Questionnaire data were collected in the experimental group only. No results are reported in this registration record.
- Conditions
- Nursing Education Research
- Being tested
- World Café Teaching Method, Traditional Lecture Method
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
World Café Teaching MethodBehavioural
A structured, instructor-guided participatory teaching method featuring rotating small-group discussions of pharmacology cases, inter-group exchange, collective synthesis, and instructor feedback.
Traditional Lecture MethodBehavioural
Instructor-delivered lectures using PowerPoint presentations and blackboard instruction, with classroom assignments and homework, covering the same core pharmacology content as the experimental group; no World Café rotation or structured small-group case discussion was used.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| World Café Group | Experimental | Classes allocated to this arm received the World Café method integrated into the standard pharmacology curriculum: small-group case discussion, inter-group rotation and exchange, collective synthesis, and instructor feedback. One class was allocated per round (Round 1: n=100; Round 2: n=124). Instructors from the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Basic Medical Science, Kunming Medical University, delivered the intervention over the full semester (March-July 2023, Round 1; March-July 2024, Round 2), covering the same core content and final examination as controls. All instructors received standardised 2-hour World Café training; fidelity and attendance were not formally assessed. Receives: Behavioral: World Café Teaching Method |
| Traditional Lecture Group | Active comparator | Classes allocated to this arm received traditional lecture-based pharmacology instruction via PowerPoint presentations and blackboard instruction. Students completed classroom assignments, homework, and the same final examination based on the standard pharmacology curriculum. No World Café rotation or structured small-group case discussion was used. In each round, three classes were allocated to this arm (Round 1: n = 296 across three classes; Round 2: n = 370 across three classes). The course was delivered by the same teaching group and spanned the full semester in each round (March-July 2023 for Round 1; March-July 2024 for Round 2). Receives: Behavioral: Traditional Lecture Method |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Pharmacology Final Examination Total Score
The primary outcome was the total score on a unified written pharmacology examination comprising 74 items. The total score ranged from 0 to 100 points (higher scores indicate better performance). It was the sum of two dimension scores: 70 single-best-answer multiple-choice questions (0-70 points) and four case-based short-answer questions (0-30 points). Examination papers were marked by instructors blinded to group allocation. The examination was administered at the end of the semester after completion of the pharmacology course.
Measured: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
Secondary outcomes (4)
Accurate Knowledge Identification and Discrimination
Assessed by 70 single-best-answer multiple-choice questions within the same final pharmacology examination. Scores ranged from 0 to 70 points (higher scores indicate better performance). This was a secondary/exploratory outcome.
Measured: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
Knowledge Integration, Reasoning, and Clinical Decision-Making (KIRCD)
Assessed by four case-based short-answer questions within the same final examination, marked against a written answer key with predefined scoring points. Scores ranged from 0 to 30 points (higher scores indicate better performance). This was a secondary/exploratory outcome.
Measured: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
Student Perceptions of Teaching
Assessed in the experimental group only using two self-developed 5-point Likert questionnaires: the Group Learning Experience Questionnaire (15 items) before the course, and the World Café Learning Questionnaire (15 items) after a standardised instructor-led introduction and before the World Café sessions. For both questionnaires, total/mean scores ranged from 1 to 5, with higher scores indicating more positive perceptions of teaching. These were descriptive/perceived measures without a control-group comparison.
Measured: Baseline (before the course) and Week 1 (before the first World Café session), experimental group only
Perceived Benefits for Self-Regulated Learning
Assessed in the experimental group only at the end of the semester using the self-developed Questionnaire on Perceived Benefits for Self-Regulated Learning (8 items; 5-point Likert scale). Scores ranged from 1 to 5, with higher scores indicating greater perceived benefit for self-regulated learning. Because there was no control group and no pre-intervention measurement, this measure reflects perceived benefits and not an objective improvement in self-regulated learning ability.
Measured: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry), experimental group only
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted22 May 2026
- Study start1 Mar 2023
- Primary completion30 Jul 2024
- Study completion30 Jul 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Nursing Education ResearchStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 890 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Ying Guo
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor-investigator, Ying Guo, Kunming Medical University
- Investigators
- Ying Guo, Principal investigator, Kunming Medical University
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07601984
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- KMMU2023MEC016
- Status last verified
- Oct 2026
- First submitted
- 9 May 2026
- Last updated
- 29 Oct 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: De-identified individual participant data that underlie the results reported in this article will be made available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author. Study materials (e.g., questionnaires) are available as supplementary materials. Data will be shared for academic purposes only, subject to institutional approval and completion of a data sharing agreement.
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 29 Oct 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- The World Café Teaching Method and Pharmacology Academic Performance Among Nursing Students: An Exploratory Two-Round Cluster Randomised Trial With Perceived Self-Regulated Learning Outcomes
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07601984
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- KMMU2023MEC016
- Conditions
- Nursing Education Research
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 890 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Ying GuoUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Mar 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 30 Jul 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 30 Jul 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 22 May 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
This exploratory two-round cluster-randomised trial examined the World Café teaching method, a structured participatory approach, in pharmacology education for third-year undergraduate nursing students. The study was designed to assess whether the World Café method, compared with traditional lecture-based instruction, was associated with pharmacology final examination performance-including the total examination score (primary outcome), accurate knowledge identification and discrimination, and knowledge integration, reasoning and clinical decision-making (secondary/exploratory outcomes)-and with students' perceptions of teaching and perceived benefits for self-regulated learning (SRL), measured by self-developed questionnaires. The trial was exploratory and was not powered to confirm a treatment effect. Eight classes were randomised across two rounds (four classes per round; three control classes and one experimental class per round). The experimental classes received World Café case-discussion integrated into the same core pharmacology content, while control classes received traditional lectures. The primary outcome was analysed with linear mixed models with class as a random intercept, with small-sample correction and a within-round exact permutation test. Questionnaires were administered in the experimental group only.
Detailed description
This exploratory two-round cluster-randomised trial was conducted at Kunming Medical University during two consecutive academic years (March-July 2023 and March-July 2024). Classes were the unit of randomisation; within each round, four intact classes were randomised 3:1 to control or experimental arms. Randomisation was performed separately within each round by an independent statistician using computer-generated random numbers (SPSS 19), and the allocation sequence was concealed from teaching staff and participants until assignment. Because the intervention was educational, participants and instructors were not blinded; final examination papers were randomly assigned for marking, and both marking and data analysis were performed blinded to group allocation. The study was exploratory and was not powered to confirm a treatment effect: the design-stage sample size calculation assumed an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.01, whereas the observed ICC was 0.100 in Round 1 and 0.015 in Round 2, and the final sample of 890 students was below the ICC-adjusted target. The primary outcome was analysed with linear mixed models (treatment arm as a fixed effect, class as a random intercept, restricted maximum likelihood), fitted separately by round and pooled with round as a fixed effect; because only four classes were randomised per round, P values and confidence intervals were based on a t reference distribution with degrees of freedom equal to the number of randomised clusters minus the number of estimated fixed effects, and a parametric bootstrap was used to check the adequacy of this correction. An exact within-round permutation test was used as a randomisation-based sensitivity analysis; with four classes per round, the minimum attainable two-sided P value is 0.125. Baseline comparability was assessed descriptively using students' final examination score from the prerequisite Physiology course. Questionnaire data were collected in the experimental group only. No results are reported in this registration record.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| World Café Group | Experimental | Behavioral: World Café Teaching MethodClasses allocated to this arm received the World Café method integrated into the standard pharmacology curriculum: small-group case discussion, inter-group rotation and exchange, collective synthesis, and instructor feedback. One class was allocated per round (Round 1: n=100; Round 2: n=124). Instructors from the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Basic Medical Science, Kunming Medical University, delivered the intervention over the full semester (March-July 2023, Round 1; March-July 2024, Round 2), covering the same core content and final examination as controls. All instructors received standardised 2-hour World Café training; fidelity and attendance were not formally assessed. |
| Traditional Lecture Group | Active comparator | Behavioral: Traditional Lecture MethodClasses allocated to this arm received traditional lecture-based pharmacology instruction via PowerPoint presentations and blackboard instruction. Students completed classroom assignments, homework, and the same final examination based on the standard pharmacology curriculum. No World Café rotation or structured small-group case discussion was used. In each round, three classes were allocated to this arm (Round 1: n = 296 across three classes; Round 2: n = 370 across three classes). The course was delivered by the same teaching group and spanned the full semester in each round (March-July 2023 for Round 1; March-July 2024 for Round 2). |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 23 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Third-year undergraduate nursing students at Kunming Medical University
- Enrolled in the pharmacology course during the study semester (March-July 2023 or March-July 2024)
- Willing to participate and provided informed consent
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Students who did not complete the pharmacology course or did not take the final examination
- Students who did not provide informed consent
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| World Café Teaching MethodA structured, instructor-guided participatory teaching method featuring rotating small-group discussions of pharmacology cases, inter-group exchange, collective synthesis, and instructor feedback. | Behavioural | World Café Group |
| Traditional Lecture MethodInstructor-delivered lectures using PowerPoint presentations and blackboard instruction, with classroom assignments and homework, covering the same core pharmacology content as the experimental group; no World Café rotation or structured small-group case discussion was used. | Behavioural | Traditional Lecture Group |
Primary outcome
Pharmacology Final Examination Total Score
Time frame: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
The primary outcome was the total score on a unified written pharmacology examination comprising 74 items. The total score ranged from 0 to 100 points (higher scores indicate better performance). It was the sum of two dimension scores: 70 single-best-answer multiple-choice questions (0-70 points) and four case-based short-answer questions (0-30 points). Examination papers were marked by instructors blinded to group allocation. The examination was administered at the end of the semester after completion of the pharmacology course.
4 secondary outcomes
Accurate Knowledge Identification and Discrimination
Time frame: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
Knowledge Integration, Reasoning, and Clinical Decision-Making (KIRCD)
Time frame: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)
Student Perceptions of Teaching
Time frame: Baseline (before the course) and Week 1 (before the first World Café session), experimental group only
Perceived Benefits for Self-Regulated Learning
Time frame: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry), experimental group only
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 29 Oct 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No. De-identified individual participant data that underlie the results reported in this article will be made available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author. Study materials (e.g., questionnaires) are available as supplementary materials. Data will be shared for academic purposes only, subject to institutional approval and completion of a data sharing agreement.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Ying Guo principal investigator
Kunming Medical University
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing World Café Teaching Method and Traditional Lecture Method in people with Nursing Education Research, run by Ying Guo at 1 site in China.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 2 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 29 Oct 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in China. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Pharmacology Final Examination Total Score (time frame: End of the semester (up to 5 months after course entry)). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 29 Oct 2026.