Preparing allied health faculty to use and develop computer-assisted instruction

Microcomputers can be powerful teaching tools if educators learn to develop effective computer-assisted instruction (CAI). This paper reports on an allied health faculty development project that incorporated hands-on workshops and guided individual instruction led by a specialist in the educational uses of microcomputers. Faculty participants gained basic computer literacy skills and learned to assess the salient characteristics of quality software. They also learned specialized skills for designing their own CAI packages. The positive change in participants' knowledge about and attitude toward microcomputers as instructional tools was measured both subjectively by the authors and by a participants' self-report questionnaire. This project can serve as a model for helping allied health educators become computer literate and gain the skills necessary to evaluate and author quality computer-assisted instruction.