Incorporating active learning in psychiatry education.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Pedagogy in Higher Education

Background:

• Active learning strategies are increasingly recognized for their effectiveness in higher education.
• Evidence supporting active learning in general higher education is robust, yet specific applications in psychiatry education are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the active learning literature within higher education.
• To assess the applicability of active learning principles to postgraduate psychiatry training.
• To guide the creation of a new Formal Education Course (FEC) for the Master of Medicine (Psychiatry) at the University of Sydney.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a literature search focusing on 'active learning', 'flipped classroom', 'problem-based learning', and 'psychiatry education'.

Main Results:

• The literature strongly supports the efficacy of active learning pedagogy in higher education settings.
• A notable gap exists in psychiatry-specific research on active learning methodologies.
• A novel 'flipped classroom' model was designed for the Master of Medicine (Psychiatry) program.

Conclusions:

• Postgraduate psychiatry training inherently incorporates active learning principles.
• The pedagogical strategies employed in Formal Education Courses (FECs) warrant further investigation and evaluation.