In the fall of 2014, 20.4 million American students were enrolled in higher education. Of these, 28% or 5.8 million students were taking at least some of their courses at a distance and half of those or nearly 3 million students were taking all of them at a distance (Allen, Seaman, Poulin, & Straut, 2016). According to the 2017 New Media Consortium Horizon Report, “online, mobile, and blended learning are foregone conclusions” (Adams Becker et al. 2017, p. 2) reflecting the growing numbers of students seeking more flexible schedules and learning environments. In addition, employers are demanding that higher education teach real-world skills to improve student employability and workplace development (Stavredes, 2011).

Coccidiosis remains a significant threat to the welfare of game farm–reared pheasants in the United States. Although lasalocid has been demonstrated to be effective against pheasant specific coccidia, information regarding its safety in this species is lacking. The purpose of this study was to gather data on the safety of lasalocid when fed to Chinese ring-necked pheasants at one, two, and three times the recommended high dose of lasalocid used for prevention of coccidiosis in other poultry at three times the normal treatment period. Pheasant chicks (approximately 1 day-old; n  =  160) were randomly blocked by sex into four treatment groups and given their respective diets continuously for 6 wk. No significant differences were observed in overall feed consumption, weight gain, feed conversion rates, clinical pathology measurements, or tissue gross and histopathologic evaluations between controls and treatment groups associated with lasalocid administration. Based on the results of this study it appears that lasalocid fed at the recommended rate of 125 ppm is safe in Chinese ring-necked pheasants.

Influenza A pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus continues to rapidly spread worldwide. In 2009, pandemic (H1N1) 2009 infection in a domestic cat from Iowa was diagnosed by a novel PCR assay that distinguishes between Eurasian and North American pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus matrix genes. Human-to-cat transmission is presumed.

Three related studies replicated and extended previous work (J.A. Danielson et al. (2003),Educational Technology Research and Development, 51(3), 63–81) involving the Diagnostic Pathfinder (dP) (previously Problem List Generator [PLG]), a cognitive tool for learning diagnostic problem solving. In studies 1 and 2, groups of 126 and 113 veterinary students, respectively, used the dP to complete case-based homework; groups of 120 and 199, respectively, used an alternative method. Students in the dP groups scored significantly higher (p = .000 and .003, respectively) on final exams than those in control groups. In the third study, 552 veterinary students responding to a questionnaire indicated that the dP’s gating and data synthesis activities aided learning. The dP’s feedback and requirement of completeness appear to aid learning most.

During the past 60 years, we transitioned from a society dominated by industrial workers to one abundant with knowledge workers. Sixty years ago, knowledge was relatively scarce and challenging to acquire. Though libraries did their best to distribute information on paper media, a simple literature search typically involved many hours of combing through card catalogs and lengthy bibliographic print publications such as Index Medicus. Frequently, searches were delayed for weeks when the desired reference was sent out for binding or checked out by another patron. Innovations like Google, PubMed, e-journals and digital repositories changed everything. Now, information is not only available, it is overwhelmingly so. Currently, the challenge is less how to acquire knowledge, and more how to sort through the ever-burgeoning content to find relevant and reliable information.

Though our information paradigm has transformed dramatically, our education system remains largely unchanged. In the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), administered annually at more than 700 colleges and universities, over 60% of college students reported in 2014 that “memorizing facts, ideas, or methods from your courses and readings so you can repeat them pretty much in the same form” was used either “quite a bit” or “very much.”2 In other words, the majority of college students report that their courses emphasize rote memorization. Back when information was scarce, it was necessary for professors to distribute knowledge through lecture, and students to memorize facts and figures to recite on examinations. Now that information is readily accessible, it makes sense that our education system can loosen its grip on methods that promote memorization skills and turn toward helping students cope with information overload by teaching critical thinking skills needed to find reliable information, interpret that information, and apply knowledge to solve problems. These are the complex skills essential to the development of disciplinary expertise.

The Diagnostic Pathfinder was designed to help students learn diagnostic problem solving by supporting them in explaining relationships among history and physical examination findings, data abnormalities, and the underlying mechanisms of disease. The Pathfinder has been used to teach diagnostic problem solving to veterinary students since 2001 and is currently in use at 10 colleges of veterinary medicine. This article describes how the Pathfinder works and summarizes results from studies exploring the effect of Pathfinder use on learning and satisfaction. Pathfinder characteristics are described in terms of their influence on cognitive load, and strategies are provided for effective implementation.

The Diagnostic Pathfinder has been used for nearly ten years at multiple colleges of veterinary medicine to teach diagnostic problem solving. A number of prior studies show this tool to be effective. Research in medical diagnostic problem solving provides hints, but no unambiguous answers regarding how such a tool should be designed. This in-depth review of the interface discusses each interaction in terms of how that interaction relates to the tool’s success. Nine faculty members who have taught using the Pathfinder during the last decade responded to interview questions regarding the tool. Their responses supported what had already been learned – that there is benefit when learner and instructor use the same process for solving a diagnostic problem, and then compare results, and when students learn in the context of realistic problems. Additionally, instructor responses suggest that the Pathfinder has been effective because it has 1.) enabled precise communication among experts and learners in a field where there is no generally agreed upon format for precisely communicating understandings of interrelationships between mechanisms of disease and clinical laboratory data, and 2.) provided a framework for manipulating data that respects the limitations of human memory and invites a thorough, explicit, and “artistic” rendering of the rationale.

The purpose of two related studies was to explore the relationships between course characteristics (teaching approach, content type, and level of curricular coordination), lecture-capture implementation, and learning in a veterinary medical education environment. Two hundred and twenty two students and 35 faculty members participated in the first study, which surveyed respondents regarding their perception of lecture-capture use and impact on learning. Four hundred and ninety one students participated in the second study, which compared scores on a standardized test of basic science knowledge among groups experiencing various levels of lecture-capture implementation. Students were most likely to view captured lectures in courses that moved quickly, relied heavily on lecture, were perceived as highly relevant to their future success, and contained information not available in other formats. A greater percentage of students than faculty perceived lecture capture as beneficial to learning. Higher views of captured lectures were associated with higher test scores in disciplines that relied most heavily on a straight-lecture teaching approach and had a basic science – researchteaching context. The number of lecture-capture views was not significantly related to test scores in disciplines that relied less heavily on straight lecture for instruction and had a basic science – applied teaching context.

Muscle diseases characterized by degeneration, necrosis, or inflammation with degeneration/necrosis may be detected with clinical chemistry techniques. The common feature of these conditions is disruption of muscle cell membranes and release of enzymes and cytoplasmic contents into surrounding blood and lymph. Muscular atrophy and neoplastic conditions not associated with cell membrane disruption usually do not cause changes in standard clinical chemistry tests.

BACKGROUND:

Computer-aided instruction (CAI) was developed to teach veterinary students how to make blood smears. This instruction was intended to replace the traditional instructional method in order to promote efficient use of faculty resources while maintaining learning outcomes and student satisfaction.

OBJECTIVES:

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a computer-aided blood smear tutorial on 1) instructor's teaching time, 2) students' ability to make blood smears, and 3) students' ability to recognize smear quality.

METHODS:

Three laboratory sessions for senior veterinary students were taught using traditional methods (control group) and 4 sessions were taught using the CAI tutorial (experimental group). Students in the control group received a short demonstration and lecture by the instructor at the beginning of the laboratory and then practiced making blood smears. Students in the experimental group received their instruction through the self-paced, multimedia tutorial on a laptop computer and then practiced making blood smears. Data was collected from observation, interview, survey questionnaires, and smear evaluation by students and experts using a scoring rubric.

RESULTS:

Students using the CAI made better smears and were better able to recognize smear quality. The average time the instructor spent in the room was not significantly different between groups, but the quality of the instructor time was improved with the experimental instruction.

CONCLUSIONS:

The tutorial implementation effectively provided students and instructors with a teaching and learning experience superior to the traditional method of instruction. Using CAI is a viable method of teaching students to make blood smears.