Pretests and posttests in the field of preventive medicine and public health were administered to third–year medical students of Shinshu University School of Medicine. This study aimed to determine whether pretest scores or posttest scores correlated with the term–end examination scores.
1）Pretests and posttests were administered 7 times to 112 third–year medical students, and the term–end examination was given in the first semester of the 2010 academic year.
2）Correlations were determined between pretest scores, posttest scores, the difference between pretest and posttest scores, and term–end examination scores. In addition, students were divided into quartiles in accordance with the pretest scores, and the posttest and term–end examination scores were compared among these quartiles.
3）The pretest scores significantly correlated with the posttest and term–end examination scores. The posttest and term–end examination scores were significantly higher in the fourth quartile（the highest pretest score quartile）than in the first quartile（the lowest pretest score quartile）.
4）The posttest scores did not correlate with the term–end examination scores.
5）Thus, we concluded that the pretest score rather than the posttest score is a useful predictor of the term–end examination score.

1) A BLS training program was held for the first-year students of Tokai University School of Medicine in 2007/08.
2) The training program was based on the objective structured clinical examination. In 2007, our faculty directly instructed first-year students. In 2008, under the guidance of faculty members, fifth-year medical students doing clinical clerkships served as student-instructors for teaching first-year students.
3) To assess the BLS training program, questionnaires were completed by both the first-year students and the fifth-year students. The results of the survey showed that all students participated in this program with high motivation and intensity. The first-year students rated the guidance given by student-instructors more highly than that given by faculty members. Moreover, the program appeared to be enjoyable and challenging for the fifth-year medical students. Thus, the preceptor-based BLS training program (the Yanegawara method) potentially motivates both first-year and fifth-year medical students.