SOLAR: student oriented learning about radiography

The success or otherwise of a radiographic examination is like other health-related interventions, crucially dependent upon the knowledge base of the radiographer and the quality of his/her clinical acumen. Traditional curricular approaches are limited in their ability to assist students to make vital connections between science and clinical decision making. This paper describes a computer-based case-oriented program called SOLAR (student oriented learning about radiography) that has been designed to achieve the necessary level of integration. The key feature of SOLAR is the requirement for students to construct a clinical action plan in response to a scenario provided. Upon submitting this plan, the student can then compare his/her plan to that prepared by an expert. The browsing configuration of SOLAR makes it highly attractive for other health professions as well. Student feedback indicates a high degree of approval for this approach.