The effect of a computer assisted instructional program on physical therapy students

The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy and efficiency of CAI for students learning evaluation and treatment skills for carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Ten volunteer physical therapy students were randomly assigned into either CAI or interactive lecture instructional groups. Each student completed a 36-item pretest on CTS. The CAI group used the Physical Therapy Patient Simulator CAI and the instructional group participated in lecture/discussion to complete the case studies. Following completion of instruction, an identical 36 item posttest was administered to all students. Individual start and finish times for the two groups were recorded by the instructor. A 2 x 2 ANOVA revealed no significant difference in pretest/posttest scores between CAI and interactive lecture. A t-test determined the CAI group completed the case assignment 30 minutes (24% faster than the interactive group. The findings suggest that using a CAI simulation program may be as effective and more efficient than traditional methods of instruction.