The relationship between medical students' epistemological beliefs and achievement on a clinical performance examination.

Purpose: This study was to explore the relationship between clinical performance examination (CPX) achievement and epistemological beliefs to investigate the potentials of epistemological beliefs in ill-structured medical problem solving tasks.

Methods: We administered the epistemological beliefs questionnaire (EBQ) to fourth-year medical students and correlated the results with their CPX scores. The EBQ comprised 61 items reflecting five belief systems: certainty of knowledge, source of knowledge, rigidity of learning, ability to learn, and speed of knowledge acquisition.

[The relationship between problem-based learning and clinical performance evaluations].

Purpose: To explore the relationship between problem-based learning (PBL) evaluations and clinical performance.

Methods: The study included 117 third-year medical students at Chonnam National University Medical School. The students' first-, second-, and third-year PBL evaluations were compared with their clinical performance examination (CPX) scores in third year.

Mentoring experience and its effects on medical interns.

Introduction: Effective mentoring helps interns in the early stages of their medical career to reach personal and professional goals. This study investigated the mentoring experience of Korean interns during medical internship and evaluated mentoring effects to facilitate the development of future mentoring programmes.

Methods: Participants were interns being trained at Chonnam National University Hospital, South Korea, in 2011.

Medical students' failure experiences and their related factors.

Purpose: A considerable number of medical students drop out due to low academic achievement, and these students have a high probability of repeated failure experiences. This study investigated the personal and academic problems of these students to help develop student support systems.

Methods: First-year (n=146) and second-year (n=119) medical students were asked to complete questionnaires.

Advance organizers in a gross anatomy dissection course and their effects on academic achievement.

We presented two kinds of advance organizers (AOs), video clips and prosection, for a gross anatomy dissection course and compared their effects on academic achievement and student perception of the learning experience. In total, 141 students at Chonnam National University Medical School were randomly assigned to two groups: Group 1 (n = 70) was provided with video clips AO, whereas Group 2 (n = 71) was provided with prosection AO, the use of cadaveric specimens dissected by the course instructor. Student self-assessment scores regarding the learning objectives of upper limb anatomy improved significantly in both groups.

Analysis of Verbal Interactions in Problem-based Learning.

Purpose: Problem-based learning (PBL) is a constructive learning environment that solves ill-structured problems through collaborative learning. The purpose of this study was to analyze the interaction of students and a tutor in a small-group PBL discussion. This study examined how the types of interactions are composed over the meeting.

Changes of Epistemological Beliefs and Self-regulated Learning in Problem-based Learning.

Purpose: Epistemological beliefs (EBs) are fundamental assumptions about the nature of knowledge and learning. Self-regulation (SR) is the ability and willingness to effectively use and monitor cognitive strategies. Problem-based learning (PBL) emphasizes meaningful learning through solving ill-structured problems.

Comparison of Learning Styles between Medical College Students and Professional Graduate Medical School Students.

Purpose: The Professional Graduate Medical School (PGMS) was established in 2003 in South Korea to train doctors that had better humanities and various educational backgrounds. By comparing the learning styles between students of the Medical College (MC) and PGMS, we investigated the characteristics of these students.

Methods: The Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI) is used to determine learning preferences.