Anatomy and physiology interactive video clips were introduced into a blended learning environment, as an optional resource, and were accessed by ~50% of the cohort. Student feedback indicated that clips were engaging, assisted understanding of course content, and provided lecture support. Students could also access two other optional online resources, lecture capture recordings and an interactive atlas of anatomy, and individuals were tracked with respect to their access behavior, learning approach, and subject score. Deep learning was highest among those accessing the clips or atlas or those accessing more online resources, and thus self-regulatory skill development might be a useful approach to increase student access to optional online resources. Those who accessed clips, lecture capture recordings, or atlas achieved a significantly higher subject score than those who did not. When combinations of resources used were considered, we found an approximately linear relationship between number of resources accessed and subject score, with a 16% difference in score between those who accessed none or all of the resources. However, the low resource access rate suggests that academic advantage may not be simply due to the learning support offered by the resources. As students accessing the optional resources tended to be more self-regulated, it may be that it was the extra effort made with respect to other subject resources, rather than just the access to the online resources, that contributed to higher subject score. Further studies are required to establish the relationships between academic performance, optional online resource access, and deep learning.

THE ACCOMMODATION of diverse student learning approaches and maintenance of good academic outcomes are often difficult to achieve in university courses, particularly where large classes are concerned. These issues become even more significant when dealing with first-year students in science courses with high levels of factual and conceptual content (18). In this report, we describe the construction and use of pedagogically sound, yet inexpensive, video clips that can be used to support learning of physiology concepts. To avoid confusion, we have used the term "video clip" with specific reference to concise, audiovisual presentations generally Ͻ15 min in length (15) rather than the more general term "podcast" (3-5, 9, 13). A feature of the video clip design was the addition of interactive components that suggested the viewer engage in some form of active learning. The video clips were designed to support student learning in a large (n ϭ 177) Biomedical and Physical Sciences course mainly concerned with human anatomy and physiology. Access to the video clips was optional, and the students also had access to other online learning resources that included "whole lecture" Lectopia recordings (50 min recordings, audio plus PowerPoint slides), multiple-choice questions (MCQs; WebLearn), and an in-house-designed "interactive anatomy atlas." Students were able to access the video clips via the RMIT University BlackBoard system, which also incorporated a tracking function to measure student access to resources. The tracking system only provided information about online access and did not distinguish between online access and downloading of the videos. Some insight into the effectiveness of the clips was provided by the tracking data and by completion of a paper-based question (using a 5-point Likert scale). This work formed part of a comprehensive study evaluating student access and the use of a range of anatomy and physiology online resources. The study was approved by the Human Ethics Committee of RMIT University, and 105 student volunteers (59% of the class) agreed to participate.

Although neuroscience studies have provided us with an increasingly detailed picture of the basis for learning and memory, very little of this information has been applied within the area of teaching practice. We suggest that a better understanding of neuroscience may offer significant advantages for educators. In this context, we have considered recent studies in the neuroscience of learning and memory, with particular emphasis on working and semantic memory, and also suggest that neuroscience research into self-referential networks may improve our understanding of the learning process. Finally, we propose that advances in understanding the neural basis for metacognition may encourage the development of new perspectives that may help us to motivate students to learn about their own learning processes.

A simple "stop think" approach was developed to encourage the self-assessment of learning. A key element was the requirement for students to rate their feeling of difficulty before [FOD] and after [FOD] completing each of three authentic anatomy and physiology concept map exercises. The cohort was divided into low- (group L) and high-performing (group H) groups (based on final subject marks). Both FOD (group L) and FOD (groups L and H) were significantly negatively correlated with score for some maps. A comparison of FOD and FOD showed that students changed their mind about difficulty in 58-70% of the completed maps. Students who changed their estimation were asked to provide explanatory comments, and an increase in difficulty was related to problems with map link generation. For students who found the maps easier, 40% of comments indicated that map generation prompted recall of information from memory. Both difficulty estimations and comments supported the contention that students were self-assessing their interaction with the concept maps. Group H was significantly older than group L, had significantly higher levels of deep strategic and deep motivational learning, and had significantly higher marks in two of three concept map exercises. Notwithstanding these differences, the results from the "stop think" approach were similar between groups, indicating that it may be appropriate for students of varying academic ability. It is suggested that "stop think" may be a useful approach to encourage student self-assessment, an important step in assisting self-regulated learning development.

This article describes student perceptions and outcomes in relation to the use of a novel interteaching approach. The study sample (n = 260) was taken from a large human physiology class, which included both first- and second-year students. However, unlike the first-year students, the second-year students had significant prior knowledge, having completed a previous physiology course. Active learning, where students were required to engage with course material in a self-directed manner before tutorials and to identify areas of difficulty and discuss these within tutorial sessions, was a central component of the study. The second-year students adapted quickly to the novel approach, as indicated by stable levels of perceived difficulty and understanding. In contrast, the first-year students demonstrated a decrease in perceived difficulty and an increase in perceived individual understanding throughout the study. These results notwithstanding, there was a consistent low level of interest for both years but no significant difference between the first- and second-year individual and group learning skills by the end of the study, as measured by their performance in the tutorials. Overall, the results were encouraging, with both years achieving a reasonably high learning skill level (average: ∼70%) within the interteaching environment. The improvement of active learning shown by the first-year students may have compensated, to some extent, for the prior learning advantage of the second-year students, since both groups achieved similar marks in the written components of final exams for both interteaching modules.