Exploring frontline faculty perspectives after a curriculum change

Curriculum renewal is an essential and continual process for undergraduate medical education programmes. Although there is substantial literature on the critical role of leadership in successful curricular change, the voices of frontline faculty teachers implementing such change have not been explored. We aimed not only to examine and understand the perceptions of faculty members as they face curriculum change, but also to explore the influences on their engagement with change.

We used a constructivist grounded approach in this exploratory study. Sixteen faculty members teaching in the pre-clinical years were interviewed on their perspectives on a recent curricular change in the undergraduate medical programme at a single Canadian medical school. Constant comparative analysis was conducted to identify recurring themes.

Faculty teachers' engagement with curriculum change was influenced by three critical tensions during three phases of the change: (i) tension between individual and institutional values, which was prominent as change was being introduced; (ii) tension between drivers of change and restrainers of change, which was prominent as change was being enacted, and (iii) tension between perceived gains and perceived losses, which was prominent as teachers reflected on change once implemented.

We propose a model of faculty engagement with curricular change that elucidates the need to consider individual experiences and motivations within the broader context of the institutional culture of medical schools. Importantly, if individual and institutional values are misaligned, barriers to change outweigh facilitators, or perceived losses prevail; subsequently faculty teachers' engagement may be threatened, exposing the medical education programme to risk.