Effects of problem-based discussion on studying a subsequent text: A randomized trial among first year medical students

The Purpose of this study was to examine effects of group discussion of a m edical problem on the comprehension of a subsequent problem-relevant text b y first year medical students. Forty-eight first-year medical students were randomly assigned to one of tw o conditions: The experimental group discussed a problem of blood pressure regulation, where the control group discussed a problem of vision. Subseque ntly, all students studied a text on the physiology of blood pressure regul ation. Finally, a free recall test was administered. Numbers of proposition s accurately recalled were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). Stu dents who discussed the blood pressure regulation problem recalled 25% more from the text than those who discussed the control problem. This differenc e was statistically significant. The present study represented the first tr uly randomized trial in the ecologically valid context of a medical curricu lum. It demonstrated the positive effects of problem-based tutorial group d iscussion on the comprehension of text. It confirmed earlier findings from laboratory studies that problem-based learning, in addition to positive emo tional and motivational long-term effects well-documented in the literature , also has positive effects on learning.