Effect of the use of instructional anatomy videos on student performance

Medical schools have reduced the time allotted to anatomy instruction. Consequently, schools engage students in more independent settings using information and communication technologies (ICT). There has been limited research in the use of video aids, a type of ICT, to enhance anatomy examination performance. The objective of this study is to describe the design, usage, and effect on examination performance of eight locally developed instructional anatomy videos. First‐year UCSF medical students (n = 141) had access to the videos. They reported their video usage, reason for usage, and satisfaction. The prior year students (n = 141) served as a historical control group. Anatomy and radiology examination performance was compared between groups while controlling for prior performance. The students with and without access to the videos did not differ in examination performance. Sixty‐one (43%) students in the experimental group responded to the survey. Of these, 79% reported using at least one video, viewing an average of 4.75 of the eight videos. They watched 3.27 (SD = 1.57, range 1–5) of the five anatomy videos and 1.48 (SD = 1.35; range 0–3) of the three radiology videos. In a regression analysis controlling for age and MCAT scores, using the anatomy videos at least once improved anatomy examination performance by 3.4% (P‐value = 0.007). There was no relationship between radiology video usage and radiology exam score. Video resource availability did not enhance student performance in anatomy and radiology. However, when analyzing performance for those whom we knew level of video use, there was a statistically different and higher anatomy achievement. Anat Sci Ed, 2008. © 2008 American Association of Anatomists.     

Generalizability of diagnostic-prescriptive teaching strategies across student locus of control and multiple instructional units

The influence of locus of control and diagnostic testing with prescribed remediation on immediate and retained science achievement was the focus of the study. To test the generalizability of the results across instructional units and to check on the existence of a treatment warm-up period, the experiment was conducted across three biology units. The results supported the existence of the warm-up period with no significant effects of diagnosis and remediation during the first unit. On later units and on the retention measure, the experimental subjects achieved significantly more than the control. No locus of control X treatment interactions were found; although, in one unit, the internal locus of control subjects achieved significantly higher than externals.     

Capacity building to bridge data use and instructional improvement through evidence on student thinking

While schools and systems across the globe promote data-driven decision making, teachers often struggle to use data, especially from external assessments, to inform daily instruction. In this paper, we examine teacher capacity building for a less typical form of data use - evidence on student thinking. We draw on data from a longitudinal, in-depth qualitative study involving middle school math teachers who were engaged in an instructional improvement project. Findings show that data use occurred when evidence from student thinking was introduced as part of the instructional planning process. This shift was facilitated by an instructional coach whose capacity building efforts with teachers focused on coherence, specifically planning high quality instruction and using data effectively, while also meeting district pacing and unit planning goals. When teachers put new strategies into practice, feedback from formative assessment data allowed teachers to identify and address misconceptions in student thinking. Learning how to use data as part of instruction helped teachers build capacity to reflect on their own practice. Implications for theory, practice, and research are discussed.     

Procedures for improving student teacher evaluation

Evaluation, Dr. Schall maintains, is designed to promote growth, not just to pass judgment or assign ratings.     

Representations of student performance data in local education policy

Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability - The use of data for governance purposes has been widely recognised as a way for national authorities to coordinate their activities across...     

Some factors influencing student performance in laboratory experimental work in physiology with implications for curriculum deliberations and instructional design

A class of 1st-year medical students was divided into a control group who performed a laboratory experiment for themselves, and an experimental group who were given a demonstrationdata interpretation exercise. Prior to the practical session the experimental group were given a programmed text covering the underlying theoretical principles, to use in their private study. The control group were instructed to do their private study in the usual way using only their lecture notes and textbooks. Prior knowledge and the gain resulting from practical instruction were assessed using pre- and post-tests.The conventional laboratory method was ineffective and did not facilitate conceptual understanding. The post-test performance and gain of the experimental group was significantly better than that of the control group, but this result did not appear to be dependent upon greater prior knowledge. The pretest performance of both treatment groups revealed that many students were inadequately prepared for the practical exercise. Many students did not appear to study the programmed text conscientiously, probably because they were accustomed to the traditional method of teaching and adopted a surface, reproductive approach to all learning. Furthermore, the students had difficulty linking their prior knowledge to the experiment, suggesting the need for pre-laboratory exercises designed to achieve closer integration between theory and experimentation.It is clear that in order to achieve more meaningful learning there is a need for the students to change their attitudes and approaches to learning and for active, student-centred teaching-learning experiences to be incorporated into the curriculum.     

Using technology-enhanced,cooperative, group-project learning for student comprehension and academic performance

Cooperative learning may improve students' motivation, understanding of course concepts, and academic performance. This study therefore enhanced a cooperative, group-project learning technique with technology resources to determine whether doing so improved students' deep learning and performance. A sample of 118 engineering students, randomly divided into two groups, participated in this study and provided data through questionnaires issued before and after the experiment. The results, obtained through analyses of variance and structural equation modelling, reveal that technology-enhanced, cooperative, group-project learning improves students' comprehension and academic performance.     

立足实际提高培训教师授课能力

教师是影响培训效果的关键因素。提高培训效果的紧要任务是提高现有培训教师的观察与捕捉能力、分析与总结能力、策划与组织能力、表达与沟通能力、引导与应变能力、学习与创新能力。     

The role of teacher instructional practices in student collaboration

Prior research on collaborative learning identifies student behaviors that significantly predict student achievement, such as giving explanations of one’s thinking. Less often studied is the role of teachers’ instructional practices in collaboration among students. This article investigates the extent to which teachers engage in practices that support students’ explanations of their thinking, and how these teacher practices might be related to the nature of explanations that students give when asked by the teacher to collaborate with each other. The teachers observed here, all of whom received specific instruction in eliciting the details of student thinking, varied significantly in the extent to which they asked students to elaborate on their suggestions. This variation corresponded to variation across classrooms in the nature and extent of student explanations during collaborative conversations and to differences in student achievement.