糖心vlog蜜桃

鈥淥ne of the main principles that I adhere to is that there should be no communication barriers between the student and the lecturer. Even considering the existing hierarchy, communication must be based on mutual respect and not cause isolation,鈥� says Assoc. Prof. Ar奴nas Barkus, who was elected as the best lecturer of 糖心vlog蜜桃 Faculty of Medicine in 2025. On this occasion, we talk to the associate professor about what is most important in communication between a lecturer and a student and how generations of lecturers and students are changing.

鈥� How did you decide to become a lecturer, and what path led you to that career?

鈥� I was probably in my 3rd or 4th year of study, when I already had thoughts that I would prefer not clinical work with patients, but pedagogical activity. I saw how wonderfully my now former lecturers worked with students, how they loved them. I myself was very pleased to communicate with the lecturers. At that time, I began to look into areas where future work might not necessarily be clinical. I was interested in pathology, and for some time, I headed the student scientific society, the pathology club. Then everything unexpectedly turned out in such a way that several new positions appeared in the current Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology. So, after graduating, I immediately got into this department and became a lecturer. In the sixth year, I had received several offers from clinicians to go to the Department of Internal Medicine and the Research Institute of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, but I had already made up my mind and had an appointment.

鈥� What do you think are your personal and professional qualities that students like? What values do you follow as a lecturer?

鈥� First of all, this question should probably be addressed to the students 鈥� how do they see and evaluate me? I feel a little myself and know from feedback that my communication style impresses students the most. One of the main principles that I adhere to is that there should be no communication walls between the student and the teacher. Even considering the existing hierarchy, communication must be based on mutual respect and not cause isolation. The teacher must respect the student 鈥� after all, the student is learning and trying to achieve the same, and maybe even one day surpass their teacher. Of course, the boundaries of academic ethics and familiarity cannot be crossed, but the atmosphere during lectures must be friendly. Another requirement that I set for myself is that practice cannot become stressful for the student. And if there is a lecture during which there is less direct contact, I have a principle that the material must be presented schematically, simply, structured and logically. Students really notice and appreciate this. I am trying to fight the established belief that in medical science, you need to memorise a lot 鈥� no, maybe you need to learn certain information and terms by heart, but I try to explain most of the material in such a way that students can imagine and understand everything in principle.

I have also heard unofficial feedback that my lectures can be compared to a stand-up show. Indeed, I do use a lot of humour in my teaching, but this works best in live meetings, not in online lectures.

鈥� What do you like most about your work as a teacher? What motivates you?

鈥� What I probably enjoy most is communicating with students. I like asking them questions and encouraging them to think. When they are able to find and remember the answer, I feel I have achieved my goal: teaching them how to retrieve information from memory. They need to record and store information in their own minds; I cannot do this for them, but I can help them retrieve what they need by providing associations and descriptions.

鈥� What has changed since you were a student yourself? What are students like today?

鈥� I observe certain differences between my generation and the current generation of students. The challenges are not related to personal characteristics, but rather to the level of knowledge students bring from school, and this is not a recent trend. When I entered medical studies, physics was the decisive entrance examination. Today, colleagues who teach physics to first-year students unfortunately note that they have to explain very basic concepts that, ten years ago, school leavers would already have mastered. An understanding of physics and physical thinking is essential in medicine, as all processes in the body follow the laws of physics. Regrettably, I observe a decline in students鈥� level of knowledge in physics. I also notice a lack of drawing and spatial-visualisation skills: when analysing CT scans and magnetic resonance images, students need to construct a three-dimensional image from two-dimensional slices, yet few have developed these skills at school.

Meanwhile, the relationship with students, in my opinion, has not changed: both then and now, the tendency to communicate respectfully and warmly was common in our faculty. We could always come to the lecturer with questions, to talk. However, the availability of information is incomparably better now, so in this sense, it is probably easier for current students to learn. Teachers only have to play the role of a navigator and advisor: to show the student the directions, where to find the right sources in that abundance of information.

鈥� What do you like to do when you are free from teaching and research work? How do you relax, get new ideas?

鈥� Well, ideas do not necessarily have to be born in your free time; it is best when they are born at work. I like to distance myself from all activities, only, of course, if there are no deadlines and obligations. My family and I have a homestead, where I really like to mow the grass, shovel snow, and split firewood. Last winter I spent a lot of time changing the roofing with a master. So I like simple physical activities and being in the shelter of nature. And passive leisure for me is associated with my curiosity 鈥� I am very interested in cinematography, music 鈥� progressive rock, heavy rock, German speed metal, power metal, Scandinavian black metal. I like to search for new recordings, listen to them, and collect a little. I also like to learn everything about historical events and personalities 鈥� every day I find a topic and delve into it, I scroll the Internet until I learn everything about it. This hobby of mine 鈥� my interest in history and geography 鈥� was already evident during my school days and has remained so to this day.

Assoc. Prof. A. Barkus is a physician, anatomist and anthropologist. He started working at the Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology of the Faculty of Medicine in 1990, and in 2000, he defended his doctoral dissertation in the field of biomedical sciences, 鈥淥dontoglyphic Characteristics of the Molar Teeth of the Current Lithuanian Population鈥�. In 2008鈥�2015, he worked as the Vice-Dean for General Affairs and Development of the VU Faculty of Medicine, and in 2013, he was awarded the pedagogical title of Associate Professor. He lectures on human anatomy for students of medicine and dentistry programs, neuroanatomy for students of psychology and neurobiology programs, human biology and anthropological dentistry for the dentistry program students. His field of scientific interest is physical anthropology. He participates in anthropological research of current and past Lithuanian populations. Other areas of activity: human anatomy, forensic medicine, and statistical applications in biomedical sciences. He is a member of the Lithuanian Morphological Society, the Archaeological Society of Lithuania, and the European Anthropological Association.