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Student exposure to illness-related theatrical performances holds intriguing educational possibilities. This project explored uses of theatrical performance within the context of medical education.Two 1-person shows, dramatically addressing AIDS and ovarian cancer, were presented to audiences totalling approximately 150 medical students, faculty, community doctors, staff and patients.Evaluations for both performances indicated increased understanding of the illness experience and greater empathy for patients. They also showed that respondents obtained additional insights into patient care issues, and developed new ways of thinking about their situations.Presenting illness-related dramatic performances as an adjunct method of enhancing empathy and insight toward patients in a self-selected group of students, doctors, staff and patients was successful. Although this approach might not be effective with all learners, those who participated felt they gained important insights into the nature of the patient experience.

The use of new information technology in marketing education has been widely, and often uncritically, accepted as both inevitable and beneficial with little in-depth analysis of this phenomenon, which is both a new mode of teaching (and learning) and a competency domain in its own right. This article examines both the potential advantages and dangers of information technology in the context of creating knowledge workers for the marketing industry. Research findings are presented to illustrate that students have distinctively different learning profiles and experiences, and these affect how students respond to traditional and new technological modes of teaching. The authors suggest that acceptance of new technologies in education by students will rely heavily on the ability of educational institutions to manage the change process. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)