A qualitative study applying Bourdieu's concept of field to uncover social mechanisms underlying major curriculum reform

Medical teachers' identity learning during major curriculum renewal: A landscapes of practice perspective

PURPOSE

To explore how medical teachers navigate their professional identities when required to implement critical pedagogy during an undergraduate curriculum renewal initiative.

METHODS

A qualitative exploratory study was conducted, using focus groups and individual interviews with twenty-six purposively selected undergraduate medical teachers at a South African university. Data were transcribed, coded, and thematically analysed. Concepts of Landscapes of Practice Theory and Teacher Identity Learning provided an interpretive framework.

RESULTS

Findings show that medical teachers' perceived capacity to implement critical pedagogy was influenced by identities that were constructed within the boundaries of a traditional biomedical curriculum. Three themes were identified, highlighting the inherent liminality of traversing a changing educational landscape: engaging in new practices: moving into the boundary space; attempting alignment: navigating identity in the boundary space; imagining the future: embracing identity in the boundary space.

CONCLUSION

Globally directed curriculum renewal imperatives may challenge the established pedagogical practices and professional identities of medical teachers. There is a need for institutional spaces that foster collaboration, dialogue, and reflection with a view to supporting the ongoing identity learning and development of knowledgeability of medical teachers responsible for curriculum transformation.

Curriculum renewal towards critically conscious graduates: Implications for faculty development

INTRODUCTION

Globally, faculty development initiatives in support of health professions (HP) educators continue to extend their remit. This work becomes more critical as HP curriculum renewal activities are influenced by needing to move beyond a biomedical focus attending to issues such as social accountability, social justice and health equity. This raises questions about how best to support our HP educators who may need to change their teaching practice as they embrace these more complex, social constructs.

METHODS

The research question for this qualitative study was: What implications are there for faculty development that can support HP educators as they are expected to incorporate the principles of critical consciousness and social accountability into their teaching as part of a curriculum renewal process? Data from 11 focus group discussions and 11 subsequent individual interviews with HP educators from two undergraduate programmes were thematically analysed after which further analysis focussed on the implications of these findings for faculty development. Transformative learning theory and models about change provided a sensitising framework.

RESULTS

Our findings pointed to an expanded role for HP educators and consequently also for those responsible for faculty development. Three main ideas were highlighted: Curriculum renewal catalyses a renewed need for faculty development, the nature of faculty development that can enable change and new foci for faculty development.

CONCLUSIONS

Faculty development can make a significant contribution to enabling change, including in the context of curriculum renewal that often extends the roles and responsibilities of HP educators. When renewal seeks to shift fundamental curriculum principles, providing support to embrace this expanded remit results in an equally expanded remit for faculty developers-one that calls for initiatives that enable critical, dialogic encounters that might foster critical consciousness, leading to change in HP education. This challenges us, as faculty developers, to turn the mirror on ourselves to consider the nature of such expanded support.

Twelve tips for co-production of online learning

In the digital age, experts in digital learning tools, or learning technologists (LTs), play an increasingly important role in the creation and delivery of online learning in health professions education. However, their expertise in the selection, curation and implementation of digital tools is often underutilized due to imbalanced relationships and lack of effective collaboration between faculty and LTs. Here, we describe how the co-production model can be applied to build equal and synergistic partnerships between faculty and LTs, so as to optimize the use of digital affordances and enhance online learning.