Massed Instruction of Equine Colic Workup Skills Increased Cognitive Load Without Impacting Skill Performance

Due to the convenience of teaching multiple skills together, equine colic skills are frequently taught to veterinary students in a single laboratory session. However, spacing skills instruction across multiple days may offer learning advantages and improve skill retention. Third-year veterinary students (n = 20) were assigned to learn two colic-related skills, equine nasogastric intubation and rectal palpation, in a single 2-hour session (massed instruction [MI]) or in two 1-hour sessions on two consecutive days (spaced instruction). All students completed a validated cognitive load questionnaire following instruction. All students underwent two structured assessments, one at 1 day and one at 3 weeks after learning the second skill. Assessments were scored using a checklist and global rating score. Time to perform the task was also recorded. Students completed two supervised practice sessions 1 and 2 weeks after the initial laboratory session(s). MI group students reported higher cognitive load for the second skill taught (rectal examination). Students in both groups had similar performance scores on both skills at both timepoints. Both groups improved their time to perform the skills. These findings suggest that in third-year students, using MI for two complex, minimally related equine colic workup skills caused an increase in cognitive load for the second skill taught (rectal examination) but did not impair learning outcomes when compared with spaced instruction. For third-year veterinary students, MI may be an effective method for teaching skills that are unrelated based upon how the task is performed but related based upon clinical context.