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Reflection on developing an undergraduate course: the value of an action research approach
Pirashanthie Vivekananda-Schmidt1
1Academic Unit of Medical Education, University of Sheffield, UK. P.Vivekananda-Schmidt@sheffield.ac.uk
Background:
Busy practitioners may not always act on their critical reflection though critical reflection is key to improving practice. This paper presents action research (AR) as a tool that could help to translate reflection into action which can aid improvement of practice.
Aim:
To critically discuss the development of a medical education course to illustrate the use of AR in enabling reflection on action and improvement to practice in complex educational environments.
Methodology:
Developmental evaluation cycles were employed in designing and integrating a cultural diversity course for student doctors.
Results:
Iterative cycles of evaluation on the cultural diversity course resulted in: (1) increased student centred activities in the course; (2) recognition and attempts to improve student reflective ability around cultural competency issues; (3) opportunity to monitor own teaching practice and; (4) improvement in practice. However, the model described here fell short of a true AR approach because of limited involvement of stakeholders in all stages of the process.
Conclusion:
Future research should investigate AR as a tool for educational change management, postgraduate learning and portfolio documentation.
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