The potential of two-way television as an instructional medium was examined through observations of presentations by medical faculty. The study found that similar teaching strategies were used in conventional classrooms and in two-way television mediated lessons. Detailed study results are offered. (Author/DF)

A study to obtain data on mental retardation training in the pediatric clerkship is reported. Responses conclude that interest in mental retardation is high, while the time commitment to teaching mental retardation and the organization of such instruction in pediatrics remains at a relatively low level.

A measure of specialty indecision was administered to 567 medical students along with measures of vocational development and exploratory behavior. Initial evaluation of the psychometric properties of the Specialty Indecision Scale indicate that it is internally consistent, relates more to specialty choice than to career choice, and inversely…

To sensitize medical students to the complexities of geriatric patient care, the geriatrics faculty of Upstate Medical Center's Clinical Campus developed Geriatrix, a role-playing game. Students attempt to win points in a board game containing Fact, Concept, and Crisis Squares. Crises promote exposure to ethical dilemmas and invite intense debate…

An investigation into the perceptions of students and instructors of the relative importance of the various teaching, advisory, and patient care functions of instructors is described. Conclusions imply that the role of teachers in a medical course should be more closely defined and the functions made more explicit. (MLW)

A summary of data collected on financial assistance available to medical students through the Liaison Committee on Medical Education Annual Questionnaire of the Association of American Medical Colleges is presented. The 1982-83 report showed that while costs of medical education continued to increase, fewer students received financial aid. (MLW)

Sex and race differences in the problems and needs of medical students were investigated. The variables of marital status and the year in school were also considered. The results suggested that many important needs of first- and second-year medical students at Emory University were not being met. (Author/MLW)

An important part of a clerkship in community medicine on the Navajo Indian reservation is a project in which students select a health problem which they investigate using epidemiological methods of assessment and for which they seek a solution. (Author/MLW)

A study to identify clinical procedures for which department chairpersons felt observational checklists would be useful is reported. A secondary purpose was to investigate aspects of the use of direct observation techniques for the assessment of clinical skills. (Author/MLW)

Medical school graduates' ratings on noncognitive aspects of professional behavior are statistically compared with measures of knowledge, data-gathering skills, and clinical judgment. The results are validated by comparison with offers of residency to the students and third-year clinical ratings. (MSE)

Assessed the attitudes of students, faculties, and practitioners associated with two schools of medicine toward gerontologic/geriatric medical education including specific items relating to course content during the preclinical and clinical years. Results revealed a consensus regarding course content in areas such as psychiatry, nutrition, and…

Medical school students were tested on ethical reasoning to see if a correlation existed between high scores in such reasoning and the medical school admission process. No correlation was found. More work should be done on the philosophical issue of whether ethical thinking should be addressed in medical school admissions. (Author/IS)

WAMI stands for Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho, for better training of their medical students, and for more doctors in their rural counties. (Editor)

The study reported was conducted to identify cognitive, affective, and skill elements that may be transmitted to medical students through the pedagogic autopsy and to determine differences, if any, between student perceptions of the amount of emphasis given these elements and faculty beliefs as to the amount of emphasis given these elements in…

In the last decade, the number of students enrolled in American medical schools increased at an annual compound rate of 5.5 percent, compared with an annual rate of 1.1 percent for the 35-year period 1930-65. Factors influencing this trend are mentioned, and future trends are speculated. (LBH)