Self or help? A comparison of a personalized system of instruction biochemistry class to a standard lecture‐based biochemistry class

AbstractFor the past eight years the University of Michigan has offered two different styles of biochemistry courses each semester, one a standard lecture‐based and discussion‐section (SLB) course and one a self‐paced, non‐lecture Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) course. We tracked student responses to selected exam questions that were used in both courses for three semesters. Data on student grade point average, student satisfaction, and perceived effort in the courses were also gathered. In two of the three semesters that we monitored students there were no significant differences in performance on test questions between the two courses. In one of the three semesters there was a small but nevertheless significant difference between the two courses with junior and senior PSI students outperforming their SLB counterparts by 10 points. Student grade point average, overall satisfaction, and perceived effort were similar for both courses. Our study indicated that the PSI format works as well as the SLB model does for students in biochemistry and may be especially beneficial for more experienced students.