The Harvard Medical School Pathways curriculum: A comprehensive curricular evaluation.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education Research
• Curriculum Reform
• Pedagogical Innovation

Background:

• The Harvard Medical School Pathways curriculum was implemented as a major educational reform.
• Key goals included enhancing student reasoning, clinical skills, and the learning environment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of the new Pathways curriculum on key educational outcomes.
• To compare the new curriculum with the prior one using a mixed-methods approach.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study comparing 2014 (prior curriculum) and 2015 (new curriculum) matriculant cohorts (n=135 each).
• Data collected via Likert-type surveys, focus groups, and academic test scores.

Main Results:

• New curriculum students reported significantly higher preclerkship learning environment ratings and satisfaction.
• Graduating students from the new curriculum rated their overall experience higher in most domains.
• No significant differences were observed in USMLE Step-1 and Step-2 scores between cohorts.

Conclusions:

• The Pathways curriculum demonstrated superior or equivalent performance in learning environment and educational quality compared to the prior curriculum.
• The reform maintained medical knowledge and clinical skills acquisition.
• Longitudinal evaluation is crucial for continuous curriculum enhancement.