[Reconsidering the roles of practical training in medical education: from the perspective of practice-centered...

Anatomy is fundamental to medical education, providing the basis for understanding normal human structure and function and for learning clinical medicine. Cadaveric dissection plays a central role in anatomy education and remains the only opportunity for medical students to obtain information directly from the human body. During dissection practice, students face cadavers with sincerity and get information from the cadavers. The educational goal is not merely the memorization of anatomical knowledge, but the construction of a three-dimensional understanding of the human body and the development of scientific observational skills. Anatomy dissection practice is possible thanks to the noble spirit of Kentai donors, who donate their bodies to contribute to medical education. As such, dissection practice also provides an important opportunity for students to express respect and gratitude toward donors, to reflect on the dignity of life, and to cultivate medical ethics and professionalism. At our university, new dissection programs have been introduced in collaboration with clinical departments. These include the use of soft-embalmed cadavers for surgical training, enabling students to learn anatomy while experiencing basic clinical procedures such as tracheal intubation. Surgeons also provide special lectures with surgical videos, explaining how anatomical knowledge is useful in their fields. In addition, integrated education combining cadaveric dissection with medical image interpretation, including CT and MRI, has been implemented to enhance students' three-dimensional anatomical understanding from early medical education. Despite recent advances in virtual reality-based teaching tools, cadaveric dissection continues to be an essential cornerstone of anatomy curricula.