Educator Development Programs

Goals

The goals of the Graduate Students as Educators (GSaE) program are two-fold:

• to provide basic evidence-based teaching skills to all Penn State College of Medicine graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to prepare them for working with learners

• to provide instruction for any graduate students and postdocs who are interested in teaching as a career goal

The program will consist of two mandatory sessions (three for PBL facilitators) as well as one of two additional workshops. All sessions are offered in the evenings and the same mandatory sessions are offered on multiple days to facilitate scheduling.

Principles

By participating in the GSaE program, students will be able to:

• Connect learning and teaching experiences with key educational principles in order to inform his/her choice of teaching methods.

• Apply educational theory and research-based learning and teaching practices in a variety of educational settings.

• Articulate how feedback from faculty and students will be used to improve learning and teaching practices.

The content for the GSaE sessions will include but not be limited to the following topics:

• Principles of Adult Learning

• Effective Planning Processes

• Designing a Lecture and Selecting Resources for Learners

• Engaging Learners in Small and Large Groups

Procedures

• All graduate students and post-doctoral fellows are expected to attend the following workshops offered by the Woodward Center for Excellence in Health Sciences Education:

  • Becoming a Successful Educator

  • Science of Learning and Adult Learning Theory

  • orientation to PBL facilitating (for those interested in teaching in the PBL curriculum)

• Two additional workshops (Just in Time Teaching and Designing Effective PowerPoint Presentations) will be offered twice per year (Spring and Fall – open to all students and postdocs). GSaE participants must also attend these workshops.

• GSaE participation will be recorded and tracked by the Woodward Center.

• Participants who complete the GSaE program will be given a certificate acknowledging their participation.

• All graduate students and post-doctoral fellows are strongly encouraged to participate in other advanced teaching skills sessions provided by the Woodward Center or other entities (e.g., Schreyer Honors College (UP), World Campus, Penn State University – Harrisburg, etc.).

Additional workshops will be announced throughout the year.

Contact: Lisa Shantz, lshantz@pennstatehealth.psu.edu

This 2.5-credit fourth-year medical student elective, offered through the Woodward Center for Excellence in Health Sciences Education, serves as a foundation for learning the principles of practical clinical, classroom and small-group teaching techniques. This course provides training in educational methods and an introduction to theory to help medical students become effective educators. Students apply what they have learned about research-based teaching practices as they work with first, second and/or third year medical students.

Course Activities

Students will:

• Choose at least one teaching opportunity

• Complete required readings

• Attend three teaching workshop sessions and debriefing session(s)

• Teach medical students and get observed at least once

• Reflect on their learning and teaching in discussion and in two papers

Teaching Opportunities

• Problem-Based Learning (PBL)

• Anatomy Lab

• Foundations of Patient-Centered Care (FPCC)

• Science of Health Systems (SHS)

• Humanities Across Clerkships

Required Core Workshop Sessions (All Course Participants)

Becoming a Successful Educator (2 hours): The goal of this session is for fourth-year medical students to begin to form an understanding of how effective educators structure learning opportunities and provide useful feedback to their learners.

Science of Learning and Adult Learning Theory (2 hours): The goal of this session is for fourth-year medical students to begin to form an understanding of how teaching philosophy and adult learning theories inform the practice of adult education.

Learn More

Email StudentsAsEducators@pennstatehealth.psu.edu for details.

A variety of opportunities are available for residents through the Residents as Educators program, a joint offering of the Woodward Center for Excellence in Health Sciences Education and the Office of Graduate Medical Education.

The Clinical Educator Track supports residents pursuing careers as future clinician educators through teaching skills, curriculum design and professional development.By the end of the track, residents will be able to:

• Develop and evaluate curricula

• Role-model advance teaching techniques

• Reflect on professional identity as educators

Applications are considered on a rolling basis for residents in PGY-1 or above.

For details, email Dr. Rachel Casas at rcasas@pennstatehealth.psu.edu.