A Comparative Study of Lecture and Discussion Methods in the Education of Basic Life Support and Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support for Medical Students

Objectives The goal of this study was to compare lecture and small-group discussion methods for educating medical students in emergency department. Methods Over a 2-year period, 155 fourth to fifth-year medical students in the emergency department were given educational sessions on basic life support (BLS) and adult advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS). These sessions were given by a single instructor in a traditional lecture format, in a small-group discussion, or in a combination of these two methods. Prior to the instructional sessions, students anonymously completed a 20-question multiple-choice examination on the covered topics. At the completion of sessions, students repeated the same multiple-choice examination. They also completed an evaluation form on the instructional format, using a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 (strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree). Results There was a significantly higher level of enjoyment in the combination group (lecture plus discussion), although there were no differences in the test scores immediately after the instructional sessions. Conclusions Medical students learning about BLS and ACLS preferred a combination of lecture and small-group discussions over traditional lectures or discussion groups. However, this preference did not lead to improved test scores on these subjects.