Methods of learning in statistical education: Design and analysis of a randomized trial.

The primary objectives were to evaluate and compare the addition of two active learning methods (cooperative and internet) on students' performance: assess their impact on performance after adjusting for differences in students' learning style; and examine the influence of learning style on trial participation. No performance differences by group were observed by intent-to-treat analysis. Participation in active learning appears to improve students performance in an introductory biostatistics course and provides opportunities for enhancing understanding beyond that attained in traditional didactic classrooms.