Preliminary evaluation of learning via the AI/LEARN/Rheumatology interactive videodisc system

AI/LEARN/Rheumatology is a level three videodisc system to teach clinical observational skills in three important diseases: rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis. The AI/LEARN software was developed on an independent authoring system called GALE designed for MS-DOS based computers. The purpose of this paper is to present preliminary data about the efficacy of teaching by the use of an interactive videodisc system as evaluated by examinations centered upon disease-oriented learning objectives and by attitude questionnaires. We tested the efficacy of the AI/LEARN/Rheumatology system using both medical students and residents taking the rheumatology elective. Data collected were on learning, attitudes, and ranking of curricular elements of the rotation. We kept records on the student time and search path through the interactive videodisc system. Control data were collected during 1990, before the AI/LEARN/Rheumatology program was available. Data for the treatment groups were collected during 1991 and 1992, while the trainees used the AI/LEARN/Rheumatology system. The basic difference between the control year and the treatment year curricula was the substitution of AI/LEARN/Rheumatology for three hours of lecture covering the three target diseases. AI/LEARN/Rheumatology was as effective as traditional methods of instruction as measured by scores on a multiple choice test. Student and resident learning was related to the time spent on the system. Students and residents ranked the AI/LEARN/Rheumatology system as the single most helpful learning tool in their 8 week rheumatology block, ranking it above the examination of patients.