A workshop on educational methods held at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos in 1980 was evaluated by means of questionnaires. The workshop was favourably received and enhanced the teaching practices of participants. As a result of the workshop, most participants wrote instructional objectives, used more audiovisual aids and adopted new methods of teaching and assessment of clinical skills. Although the session on the production of self-instructional packages (SIPs) was rated highly at the workshop, relatively few participants had completed a programmed text at time of follow-up. Similarly, most participants had set MCQs but few had calculated either the facility or discrimination index. The participants themselves suggested that future workshops should be tailored to the particular educational needs of different disciplines. The authors suggest that intensive short-term workshops may be useful for content areas which require more time than an extensive workshop permits.