Electrifying a medical school course: a case study.
BACKGROUND
At Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, the Dean charged the curriculum office to "electrify the curriculum." An instructional development team chose a 2nd-year course to serve as a model e-course and to provide evaluation data for a 2-year study.


METHODS
The instructional development process used instructional and Web design principles. An evaluation plan included a number of data collection methods: e-mail surveys, a focus group, student diaries, and comprehensive end-of-course student assessments. The e-course allowed students to take advantage of learning opportunities that traditional face-to-face instruction normally does not.


RESULTS
Students found access to multiple images; interactivity; and meaningful, efficient navigation within the site to be useful. Web-based instruction shows promise to aid students in the transition from concept acquisition to complex "doctor thinking." It does not replace the need for human teachers.


CONCLUSIONS
The authors conclude with instructional design suggestions to exploit the power of Web-based teaching for the enhancement of complex learning.
Hoban
J Dennis
JD
Office of Education Research, MCV Campus, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, USA. jdhoban@vcu.edu
Schlesinger
Jeanne B
JB
Fairman
R Paul
RP
Grimes
Margaret M
MM
D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D015397:Program Evaluation