title: A randomized pilot study of the use of concept maps to enhance problem-based learning among first-year medical students.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Medical student education is challenging, and concept maps (CMs) can help students link new and existing knowledge, promote critical thinking and identify knowledge gaps.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To study the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of CMs in problem-based learning (PBL) tutorials.
  
  
  METHODS
  Students and tutors were randomized to tutorials that used or did not use CMs. A mixed-methods approach generated qualitative and quantitative results of participants' perspectives on and the effects of CMs in PBL tutorials.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Student survey response rate was 71% (122/172). Most students (82.6%) planned to use CMs in the future at least occasionally, and students in CM tutorials endorsed increased likelihood of using CMs in the future (p = 0.02) versus students in non-CM tutorials. Qualitative analyses identified consistent associations between CMs and recurrent themes: integration of physiological mechanisms, challenging students' knowledge of the material, and identification of knowledge gaps. Quantitative assessment of final exam scores revealed a statistically significant increase in the students' scores in CM tutorials versus students in non-CM tutorials with an a priori α of <0.10.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CMs are well accepted by students and faculty, feasible to incorporate into PBL tutorials, and may result in improved exam performance and student learning of physiologic concepts.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School, USA.
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Veronese
authors.forename: Jeremy B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.forename: Luise
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pernar
authors.forename: Amy M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: Richard M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Schwartzstein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003479:Curriculum; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D017145:Models, Educational; D010865:Pilot Projects; D018794:Problem-Based Learning; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*