Active Teaching Techniques Using Virtual Didactics: Novel Experience From a National Neurosurgery Resident Course

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Neurosurgery Training
• Virtual Learning Technologies

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a shift to virtual formats for resident education.
• The Society of Neurological Surgeons (SNS) national junior resident courses (JRCs) were adapted to a virtual setting in 2020.
• Previous in-person JRCs provide a benchmark for comparison.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess neurosurgery residents' attitudes towards virtual active teaching methods.
• To compare the costs and faculty time commitment of virtual versus in-person resident courses.
• To inform future curriculum design for neurosurgery continuing medical education.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of course evaluations from virtual 2020 SNS JRCs and comparison with 2019 in-person courses.
• Comparison of course budgets and agendas to determine financial and time expenditures.
• Survey of nationwide participants in virtual junior resident courses.

Main Results:

• Resident engagement with virtual active learning techniques was rated positively by a majority of participants (61%-82%).
• Virtual courses incurred significantly lower costs ($118/participant) compared to in-person courses ($2722/participant).
• Virtual JRCs demonstrated substantial reductions in faculty hours (97.3%) and costs (97.6%).

Conclusions:

• Neurosurgery residents adapted well to virtual active teaching methods, with high engagement reported.
• Virtual courses offer substantial financial and time efficiencies for faculty and institutions.
• Future curricula should leverage virtual platforms for scalable content while reserving in-person sessions for essential hands-on and professional development experiences.