Comparison of medical students diagnostic reasoning skills in a traditional and a problem based learning curriculum.docVIP

International Journal of Medical Education. 2011; 2:87-93 ISSN: 2042-6372 DOI: 10.5116/ijme.4e64.055a Comparison of medical students’ diagnostic reasoning skills in a traditional and a problem based learning curriculum Barbara Goss , Katharine Reid , Agnes Dodds , Geoff McColl 1 2 2 2 1 Austin Health and Northern Health Clinical School, The University of Melbourne, Australia 2 Medical Education Unit, Melbourne Medical School, The University of Melbourne, Australia Correspondence: Barbara Goss, Austin Health and Northern Health Clinical School, The University of Melbourne, Australia. Email: b.goss@.au Accepted: September 05, 2011 Abstract Objectives: This cross sectional study aimed to investigate the relative effectiveness of a problem based learning curriculum (PBL) and a traditional curriculum (TC) in the development of medical students’ diagnostic reasoning skills. Methods: Junior and senior clinical students (n = 431) at a single clinical school of the University of Melbourne self- administered Bordage et al.’s Diagnostic Thinking Invento- ry (DTI) to assess diagnostic reasoning skills during transi- tion from a TC to a PBL curriculum. Mean scores for the flexibility in thinking and memory structure sub-scales were compared for students at junior and senior clinical levels under the two curricula using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). was evident on DTI scores overall. Senior students on average had higher flexibility in thinking (86.7 vs. 80.9) and memory structure scores (84.8 vs. 77.9) than junior stu- dents. Students in the TC had higher average flexibility in thinking (84.4 vs. 83.0) and memory structure scores (82.6 vs. 79.9) than students in the PBL curriculum. Conclusions: These