POSTER

Effect of a Computer-Assisted Learning (CAL) Module on Knowledge of Child Development of 1^st Year Medical Students

Authors: William S. Varade, MD; Stephen Lurie, MD
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, New York

Objective: To assess the effect of a CAL module on the knowledge of child development of first year medical students.

Methods: All 102 1st year medical students at the University of Rochester were asked to view the CD-ROM, Digital Visual Diagnosis in Pediatrics: Assessing Infant Development (Kaleida P, Shaikh N. Univ. Pittsburgh, 2003.) during the pediatric portion of an ambulatory clerkship. During a whole class session at the end of the semester, students were asked if they had viewed the CD-ROM and were shown 3 randomly selected videoclips of children of different ages from the accompanying testing module and were asked to answer 3 questions regarding their estimate of the age, other expected milestones, and anticipatory guidance appropriate for the child presented in each vignette. Scores for students who did and did not watch the CD-ROM were compared by student t test.

Results: 99 students handed in completed test forms. 15 students reported viewing the CD-ROM and 84 said they had not. Average scores were 5.4 and 4.9 points out of 9 for the students who did and did not watch the CD-ROM, respectively (0.05>P>0.02).

Conclusions: First year medical students at the University of Rochester who viewed the CD-ROM, Digital Visual Diagnosis in Pediatrics: Assessing Infant Development, performed better on an assessment of their ability to identify the age of children in videoclip vignettes, predict other expected developmental milestones, and choose developmentally appropriate anticipatory guidance for the children in the videoclips.