BUILDING A LEARNING EXPERIENCE: THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A CLERKSHIP IN GERIATRIC MEDICINE

Recent curriculum changes at McGill University include a mandatory 4-week clerkship for third-year medical students. The basis of this clerkship is the assessment and management of frail elderly who have a combination of complex acute and chronic medical problems and functional disabilities. It includes the understanding of the need for continuity of care across settings and the transition from hospital to the community. Our main purpose is to offer students a learning experience based upon self-reflection, access to technology, interactive learning and permanent feedback. To accomplish the technological goals, didactic sessions were mostly electronic-based with two main components: web-based interactive modules that include the contents in seven web-based interactive lectures complemented with pre- and post-tests, and an electronic portfolio to assess students' acquisition of skills and attitudes. We expect that implementation of this model of clinical clerkship will prepare future physicians, not only for the practice of geriatric medicine, but also for different medical and surgical specialties, and will enhance the attitudes, knowledge, and skills practitioners need to care for older people.     

流媒体技术在远程教育中的运用

流媒体技术是为解决远程教育中多媒体信息传输问题而产生、发展起来的一种网络新技术。本文简要介绍了现代远程教育存在的问题及产生原因、流媒体概述、流媒体与远程教育的完美结合,并介绍了流媒体发展中遇到的问题及解决办法     

大学图书馆的远程开放学习支持服务

本文阐述了在远程开放教育学习支持服务体系中,大学图书馆要强化远程学习支持服务特色和多媒体文献资源的展示工作,提高远程学习支持服务水平,确保远程学习服务质量;整合、开发利用各种媒体资源,做好远程学习支持服务工作;并且还提出了大学图书馆远程学习支持服务的具体措施。     

INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIAL ISSUE OF EDUCATIONAL GERONTOLOGY: INTERDISCIPLINARY GERIATRIC EDUCATION IN THE HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONS: THE DEVELOPMENT,IMPLEMENTATION, AND EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS IN THE RHODE ISLAND GERIATRIC EDUCATION CENTER

The interest around intergenerational programs and the fostering of intergenerational relationships is growing internationally. However, studies on the profile and functions of intergenerational program managers are still scarce. Furthermore, available approaches to the traits and functions of intergenerational program managers have not highlighted which features are distinctive of these professionals. Through a Delphi study undertaken in Spain, with participation of 18 intergenerational program managers and 12 intergenerational specialists, consensus was reached around characteristics of both the general profile of intergenerational program managers and the specificities of this occupational role. On the one hand, being able to work on a team, having skills for observation and contextual analysis, and being skilled at managing resources were identified as the most important general characteristics. On the other hand, being good at promoting contacts, social relationships, interactions, and bonds was deemed to be the most distinctive feature of this profile. After contrasting our results with international guidelines and standards for intergenerational work, the need to develop and reinforce further the relational nature of this professional figure is argued.     

THE GERIATRIC INTERDISCIPLINARY TEAM APPROACH: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN EDUCATING TRAINEES TOGETHER FROM A VARIETY OF DISCIPLINES

The special health needs of older persons and the organization of managed care systems necessitate interdisciplinary team health care. However, there is a paucity of training or familiarity with team care among most health care professionals. This article describes one nationwide initiative, funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation, in which eight sites trained health care workers from different disciplines to participate as interdisciplinary geriatric health care team members. Although the goal of the initiative was to develop trained interdisciplinary team participants, a major concern of the programs was the initial overcoming of challenges to training professionals from different disciplines together. Both benefits and challenges are identified and several training modalities and techniques to meet the challenges are discussed. These include case studies, standardized patients, cross-discipline role-playing, glossaries, and use of the DISC Personality Profile. The benefits of each of these modalities are examined, and potential pitfalls and perils to be avoided are emphasized.     

DEVELOPING AN INTERDISCIPLINARY GERIATRIC CURRICULUM: THE PERILS AND PAYOFFS OF COLLABORATION

Almost all of the emphasis within interdisciplinary education in geriatrics has focused on the training of clinical teams, to the exclusion of an appreciation for the unique issues facing educational teams. This paper explores the perils and payoffs of the development and implementation of an interdisciplinary curriculum by an inter-institutional faculty team at the Rhode Island Geriatric Education Center (RIGEC). Following a discussion of the principles and concepts guiding the development of the curriculum - an interdisciplinary team approach, a goal-based focus, and continuous quality improvement - the structure and implementation of the curriculum development are described. Special attention is directed toward process and outcome evaluation issues. Lastly, recommendations related to the educational team process are suggested as guidelines for faculty developing academic teams in gerontology and geriatrics. Overall, the unique and multifaceted challenges of educational teams are highlighted and lessons learned from the RIGEC experience summarized.     

SERVICE-LEARNING EDUCATION IN COMMUNITY-ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIPS: IMPLICATIONS FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY GERIATRIC TRAINING IN THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS

Major changes are taking place within the health care system that have important implications for health professions education in geriatrics. The forces driving these changes are also affecting academic settings, where trends supporting the development of community-academic partnerships, service-learning models, and interdisciplinary education are all evident. These trends have major implications for health professions educators working to develop academic programs to prepare students for future practice with older adults. This article explores the impacts of these changes, in particular, on the design of interdisciplinary or collaborative education programming, including the following dimensions: assessment and definition of the problem, emphasis on functioning and quality of life, professional identity, changing roles of faculty and students, and institutional-organizational implications. General recommendations on how to respond to the challenges represented in these trends are also explored.     

THE USE OF LEARNING PROFILES IN ASSESSMENT AND IN THE EVALUATION OF TEACHING

This paper reports how individual students respond to a nine‐week course in plant anatomy using two teaching techniques: self‐instruction and group interaction.

Students vary widely in their responses to teaching by these techniques. Over the four years of the study (1975–78) four major patterns of response have emerged. These are described as learning profiles. The profiles are composed from curves depicting the attainment of individual students, measured in seven weekly assessment tests given during group sessions. The assessment tests measured performance in four capacities, based on Bloom's criteria, viz. recall of knowledge, comprehension, application and short‐chain problem solving. Learning curves for each of these four capacities were obtained for each individual student. Other variables, e.g. general ability, age, sex, anxiety, motivation, time spent etc. were also determined for each student.

The purpose of the course is to train students to solve problems in plant anatomy. Although strategies for solving long‐chain problems were not practised in groups, the component skills used in their solution were practised in the weekly test items.

From the profile types — i.e. the patterns of individual response to the teaching ‐ it was possible to make some prediction about performance in the final examination, although this examination was predominantly one to test capacity to solve long‐chain, multi‐step problems.     

A STUDENT COURSE EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE

A student course evaluation questionnaire, based upon 50 items and used at 13 different institutions, is described.     

CARPE DIEM: OVERCOME MISCONCEPTIONS IN COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTANCE LEARNING

ABSTRACT

This paper makes note of the vast opportunities for growth and expansion available to community colleges through online distance education. While many community colleges have taken advantage of these opportunities, continued success may be in jeopardy because of the high drop-out rates in online courses of study relative to courses offered as traditional, face-to-face classroom instruction. The reason for this may be that the “digital divide” still exists between students of the 21st century and faculty who were educated long ago in the 20th century, including even those faculty who have stepped forward to offer online courses. Perception of up-to-date concepts of distance learning is a major issue, and only when the gap is bridged between distance learner and instructor will online learning reach its potential. The literature available on distance learning has numerous suggestions for bridging this gap between students and faculty. The authors of this article recommend that community colleges make the institutional commitment to equip and train Internet-ready faculty to appropriately advise and teach 21st-century students. However, taking such a step may have significant implications for the immediate future in the allocation of financial resources.     

TECHNOLOGY IN HIGHER EDUCATION: EXPLORING DISTANCE LEARNING FROM A CONSTRUCT/VIST PERSPECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to explore the extent to which distance learning (distance learning vs. traditional) may influence undergraduate education majors’ emerging constructivist perspective. Elementary education majors at 2 universities (N = 102) volunteered to complete questionnaires. The 3 independent variables were traditional vs. distance learning, whether or not ever enrolled in distance learning, and instructor difference. The 3 dependent variables were concerned with what the instructor provided; what the instructor demonstrated; and what students believed they learned. A Multiple Analysis of Variance (Manova) compared the 3 independent variables across the 3 dependent variables and indicated that students in traditional classrooms rated what the instructor provided, what the instructor demonstrated, and what students believed they learned significantly greater than students in distance learning classrooms. An interpretation suggests that distance learning technology may hold potential for facilitating undergraduate education majors’ emerging constructivist perspective.     

EVALUATION OF AN EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY SYLLABUS IN A B.ED. (HONS) COURSE

A survey was carried out among all ex‐B.Ed. (Hons) students who are currently teaching in Maltese state primary and secondary schools to investigate the relevance and interest of the topics covered in the educational psychology and human development area of the course. Using a postal questionnaire, 183 respondents (55 per cent of the population) rated each of 45 topics on a five‐point scale in terms of interest and relevance. The t‐test analyses revealed statistical significance in the difference between the mean interest and relevance ratings for the majority of the topics. The relevance of each topic for the primary and the secondary school teacher was also investigated; in only 9 topics was the difference in the ratings for relevance statistically significant. The implications of the findings for the revision of the syllabus are outlined.     

国家教委“九五”课题:残疾儿童随班就读效果评估研究

残疾儿童的个体差异较大，如何确定并保证残疾儿童的学习潜能在普通课堂上得到充分的开发，需要引起学校、家庭、社会及教、科研工作者的高度重视，需要建立一套系统的评估残疾儿童随班就读效果的指标体系。本文旨在通过对随班就读评估的目的、评估内容、评估方法和成果的分析报告，达到“本课题研究的开题目的，同时也向人们阐明对残疾儿童随班就读效果评估的必要性和紧迫性。     

INSTRUCTOR AND STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARD DISTANCE LEARNING

Eleven community college instructors and the 334 students in their distance learning classes were surveyed. Data showed instructors had conflicting attitudes about distance education. They were willing to teach a distance learning class again, but they rated the quality of the courses as equal or lower quality than other classes taught on campus. Their students, on the other hand, were highly satisfied with these instructors and the courses . But the critical factor in much of traditional classroom instruction, direct interaction with instructors, played no role in determining students' satisfaction in these courses. This difference in the nature of student-teacher interaction in distance learning classes may explain instructors' conflicting attitudes.     

DISTANCE TRAINING IN FUNCTION‐BASED INTERVENTIONS TO DECREASE STUDENT PROBLEM BEHAVIOR: SUMMARY OF 74 CASES FROM A UNIVERSITY COURSE

In this study, 188 master‐level students received training through a distance education course to conduct functional behavioral assessments (FBAs) and behavior support plans with 68 boys and six girls (aged 3–20 years) displaying persistent behavior problems in inclusive preschools, elementary, and secondary schools. In the course, master‐level students’ scores on an FBA knowledge test increased from 13.2% to 68.8% correct. Changes in pupils’ target behaviors were evaluated with a total of 114 AB single‐subject designs and combined data with one‐group pretest–posttest designs. Comparing medians of means, disruptive behaviors decreased by 77.8% and aggressive behaviors by 88.7%, whereas task engagement increased by 91.5% after intervention. Nonparametric Wilcoxon signed‐ranks tests for related samples showed that changes were statistically significant for all groups with sufficient sample sizes. Adjusted effect sizes ranged from d = .5 to 1.6. Results indicate that positive changes in student behavior problems can be attained with function‐based interventions conducted by teams trained through a distance education course.