Beschreibung:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>
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<jats:title>Background</jats:title>
<jats:p>e-learning resources may be beneficial for complex or conceptually difficult topics. Leukaemia is one such topic, yet there are no reports on the efficacy of e-learning for leukaemia. This study compared the learning impact on senior medical students of a purpose-built e-learning module on leukaemia, compared with existing online resources.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Methods</jats:title>
<jats:p>A randomised controlled trial was performed utilising volunteer senior medical students. Participants were randomly allocated to Study and Control groups. Following a pre-test on leukaemia administered to both groups, the Study group was provided with access to the new e-learning module, while the Control group was directed to existing online resources. A post-test and an evaluation questionnaire were administered to both groups at the end of the trial period.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Results</jats:title>
<jats:p>Study and Control groups were equivalent in gender distribution, mean academic ability, pre-test performance and time studying leukaemia during the trial. The Study group performed significantly better than the Control group in the post-test, in which the group to which the students had been allocated was the only significant predictor of performance. The Study group’s evaluation of the module was overwhelmingly positive.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Conclusions</jats:title>
<jats:p>A targeted e-learning module on leukaemia had a significant effect on learning in this cohort, compared with existing online resources. We believe that the interactivity, dialogic feedback and integration with the curriculum offered by the e-learning module contributed to its impact. This has implications for e-learning design in medicine and other disciplines.</jats:p>
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