Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Thinking about curriculum development and assessment


My colleague and I reflected on our site visit to Bitove Academy and shared our experience and feedback with Dr. Panisko. The conversation allowed me to reflect more on the process of curriculum design and development. We visited Bitove Academy with the intention of learning more about the program and services they offer, and whether medical students would benefit from a site visit. Medical education frequently undergoes changes that are aimed to meet the evolving needs of learners as well as the healthcare system. With change, new experiences and learning opportunities are added, while existing ones are modified or removed from the curriculum. I have been reflecting on the limited time that exists in the curriculum and the importance of ensuring that each activity has a purpose and achieves certain learning objectives.

I also began to think critically about assessment in medical education. We frequently design and implement novel ideas into the curriculum, but we must also be cognization of the evaluation process. At the same time, my opinion is also not to create additional assignments and projects for the sake of evaluation. Rather, the assessment process should match the complexity and duration of the experience. Kirkpatrick's Four-Level Training Evaluation Model outlines evaluation of reaction, learning, behaviour and results, and Bloom’s Taxonomy outlines remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating and creating. It would be valuable to evaluate students at as many levels as possible to determine true impact and significance of novel activities or experiences.

I am curious to learn more about curriculum design and development, as well as program evaluation. I have a strong interest in medical education and hope to be a part of developing and refining curricula as part of my residency training and future career.

- Usman T.

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