Quantitative concept mapping, in contrast with qualitative approaches, is rigorous scientifically and permits statistical analyses of data about concept learning. This study extends past quantitative research on the structure of student concept learning in pulmonary physiology. Pathfinder scaling is used to derive concept maps for medical and veterinary students and their physiology instructors at Northwestern University and the University of Wisconsin, respectively. The concept maps are evaluated for coherence (internal consistency), student-instructor similarity, and correlation of similarity with final examination scores. Results show that student and instructor concept maps are coherent and that student concept maps become increasingly similar to instructors' concept maps from pre- to postinstruction, but that student-instructor concept map similarity does not correlate with examination performance. Research outcomes are discussed concerning possible sources of variation in student and faculty knowledge structures.

Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: position (before or after) and type (lower order vs. higher order) of question placed in prose material. A control group had no questions in text. Before instruction, subjects received five aptitude tests. Instruction consisted of a 1,525-word prose passage. Immediately after and two weeks following instruction, subjects were tested. Differences in group means on four measures of achievement usually were statistically significant but, small. A vocabulary test interacted with treatments. Subjects with low vocabulary scores might be assigned to text material with higher order questions placed after a prose passage, while subjects with high vocabulary scores might be assigned to text without questions.

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