Effects of collaborative versus solitary interactive video learning on baccalaureate nursing student knowledge acquisition and performance of cardiac auscultation

This study investigated the effects of collaborative versus solitary learning with interactive videodisks (IV) on knowledge acquisition and clinical performance in baccalaureate (BSN) nursing students. Knowledge acquisition is measured as content and visual knowledge, while performance is evaluated by measuring perceived competence to perform, accuracy with simulated performance and accuracy with authentic assessments of three live models. Participants were 64 volunteers currently enrolled in the sophomore, junior and senior undergraduate nursing classes of a small liberal arts college in the Northeast, randomly assigned to solitary or collaborative learning conditions. All participants reviewed the cardiac auscultation section of the Mosby\u27s Guide to Physical Examination: Cardiac Assessment (FITNE, 1995) interactive videodisk. The collaborative learning groups worked as self-selected teams of two or three. The solitary learners completed the assignment alone. Discriminant function analysis was used to determine which of the predictor variables differentiated between the collaborative and solitary learners. Results indicate content knowledge scores are strong predictors of the collaborative learning condition while audio performance scores are strong predictors of the solitary learning condition. Implications for educational planners are discussed in relationship to learning theory, providing direction to enhance achievement for students involved in grouped activities using computerized instruction.