IAMSE WAS Winter Week 4

"Graduate Courses on Teaching Skills"

Presenters: Robert Carroll, Michael Parmely

January 29, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

Providing the next generation of medical educators with the knowledge, skills and attitudes that characterize successful medical educators requires a purposeful, systematic approach. This webinar will compare two such programs organized as graduate courses. Microbiology 805 at the University of Kansas Medical Center was developed by Michael Parmely in response to requests from graduate students in the PhD program. The course is organized around the principles of student-centered learning and each of the 15 sessions illustrates the prevailing theories and good teaching practices with students doing and reflecting on what they have done. In contrast, the American Physiological Society has developed a course “Becoming and Effective Teacher” as part of its Professional Skills Training program. This course blends an on-line component with a 5 day residential experience that allows the participants to develop skills as and modeling being an effective teacher. This blended approach allows a critical mass of interested students to develop a supportive peer group of committed educators. Incorporating formal educational training into Doctoral graduate programs enhances the skills of our graduates, and increases their competitiveness in the job market.

Have you registered yet for the second session in the WAS Winter 2015 series? There is still space left, so please join us!

To register, click here.

Additional Winter Series Sessions:

“Moving from Message to Action: The Role of the Learner in Feedback” – Karen Cornell
   January 8, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

“Developing Skills at Making Observations” – Eric Holmboe
   January 15, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

“Getting Started as a Medical Teacher in Times of Change” – Richard Feinberg
   January 22, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

 “PRIME Program at Wake Forest” – Allyn Howlett
   February 5, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

IAMSE Publications Committee Journal Review

Team-based learning (TBL) is an effective instructional strategy that creates a learner-centered, problem-based environment in which students work together collaboratively. For anyone considering adopting this strategy, it is often useful to look to others past experiences. Older issues of the JIAMSE (pre changing of the name to Medical Science Educator) have a variety of articles on TBL. A 2010 article by Dean Parmalee et al. was compelling because it sought to assess medical student attitudes about TBL (Click here to view article). The study, although preliminary and based on only a small sample as pointed out by the authors, reveals that students do easily perceive some of the advantages TBL. The majority of students surveyed felt strongly that preparing for TBL was an effective use of study time and that it helps in keeping up in preparation for larger exams. Nearly 80% of students agreed or strongly agreed that concepts covered in TBL exercises are more effectively learned than in solo study. When asked whether they felt that TBL fosters critical thinking and problem solving skills, 84% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed. Overall, this is an early, almost preliminary study, showing that students do see the benefits of TBL even early in their education. I am sure that other interesting and useful articles about TBL can be found in the JIAMSE archives, a resource open to all. In a related vein, IAMSE recently began a publishing venture called IAMSE Manuals, short how-to-guides about various topics in medical education. The first manual is on TBL:

How-To Guide for Team-Based Learning

Ruth Levine, Patricia Hudes

The purpose of this manual is to provide the reader an overview of the fundamental components of Team-Based Learning (TBL) and its advantages over conventional instructional methods. It serves as a blueprint for instructors who wish to begin teaching TBL in a course or curriculum and it identifies factors that will facilitate or sabotage a successful implementation of TBL.

If you are thinking about implementing TBL, this is a wonderful, short, accessible, affordable introduction to the practice. The link to order the manual can be found on the IAMSE website at http://www.iamse.org/. 

Dani L. McBeth, PhD

IAMSE Publications Committee Chair

IAMSE WAS Winter Week 3

"Getting Started as a Medical Teacher in Times of Change"

Presenter: Richard Feinberg

January 22, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET

Medical school teaching is a skill that is very often learned on the job. The faculty comprised of researchers and clinicians are expert in many biomedical disciplines, but familiarity with learning theories and pedagogy are usually not included in their knowledge and skill sets. The standards set by accrediting agencies coupled with faculty attrition rates requires efforts to focus on novice educators early in the process. The session will include a number of topics that can be used to start junior faculty on the correct path to becoming effective medical educators. Each topic will cover resources and tools to make the first teaching encounters positive experiences for the teacher and the learners. Some of the topics to be covered are:

·       Identifying a mentor

·       Becoming familiar with the goals and objectives of the institution

·       Learning about the institutions teaching resources

·       Striving to become engaged in the course

·       Selecting a pedagogy that fits the learner and you

Have you registered yet for the second session in the WAS Winter 2015 series? There is still space left, so please join us!

To register, click here.

Additional Winter series sessions:

"Moving from Message to Action: The Role of the Learner in Feedback" - Karen Cornell
January 8, 2015 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET

“Developing Skills at Making Observations” – Eric Holmboe
   January 15, 2015 12:00 – 1:00 pm ET.

“Graduate Courses on Teaching Skills” - Robert Carroll, Michael Parmely
January 29, 2015 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET

“PRIME Program at Wake Forest” - Allyn Howlett
February 5, 2015 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET

IAMSE 2015 Travel Award & Poster Submission Deadline Reminder

The deadlines are fast approaching for the Travel Award & Poster Submissions for the upcoming 19^th Annual IAMSE Meeting. You can find more information below regarding details and submission.

The 19th Annual IAMSE Conference will be held in San Diego, CA from June 13-16, 2015. The IAMSE meeting offers opportunities for faculty development and networking, bringing together medical sciences and medical education across the continuum of health care education.

All abstracts for poster presentations must be submitted in the format requested through the online abstract submission site.

Please click here to submit your abstract.

Submission deadline: December 15, 2014.

Author notification: March 1, 2015.

The IAMSE Conference Travel Awards support students or junior faculty to attend the IAMSE Annual Meeting. The amount of the 2015 Travel Awards will be $1,500, and are meant to cover expenses related to attendance at the IAMSE annual meeting in San Diego, such as conference registration, lodging, and airfare.  Any IAMSE member who will attend the 2015 Annual Meeting is eligible to apply, though preference will be given to those submitting conference proposals for a poster abstract. 

To be considered for the award, an applicant must submit the following items:

1. a current CV

2. A 300 word Personal Statement

3. An abstract or description of the work, if applicable

Applications must be submitted via e-mail, in duplicate, to: linda@iamse.org andsteinj@upstate.edu.

Submission Deadline: February 3, 2015.

Thank you,

IAMSE Admin Team