Teaching methods

Teaching methods based on conventional didactic methods that conform to "good teaching practice" can accommodate development of lower-level task abilities as defined above, but cannot, on their own, accommodate the mid-level and higher-level thinking abilities increasingly in demand. More recent teaching methods such as cognitive apprenticeship and various forms of problem-based learning (PBL) have been aimed at developing "more relevant" mid-level abilities. More exotic teaching strategies including integrated learning (IL) and research-based R&D methods have been aimed at developing "professional standard" higher-level task abilities within undergraduate programs.

These more recent teaching methods have been generally successful, although they have their own limitations, particularly when applied in their dogmatic forms. For instance, cognitive apprenticeship in its "pure" form, with its emphasis on analytic/diagnostic (mid-level) thinking behavior, has been very successful in developing mid-level task abilities but restricts individualistic projective/ prognostic thinking and therefore has had limited success in achieving higher-level task ability, while IL and R&D learning methods in their "pure" forms have been very successful in developing higher-level task abilities, but have restricted development of lower-level foundation task ability.

These restrictions have been relieved by adoption of multiple teaching methods within overall teaching protocols, resulting in the emergence of differing forms of each approach (i.e. differing protocols). For instance, at least five distinct forms of problem-based learning have emerged, differing according to domain and according to differing emphasis of one program from another, leading to widespread confusion about "definitive" problem-based learning. Nevertheless, such innovatory teaching approaches have been most successful where they have been tempered by pragmatic flexibility that allows a range of teaching methods within individual subjects and across the program to support learning of the various orders of thinking involved in the multiple task abilities required.

While this multi-protocol may seem confusing, the more precise relationships that are formed between specific objectives, specific teaching methods and specific outcomes become much more systematic and reliable in practice, without increasing loads on teachers, students or resources.

مواضيع ذات صلة

Alignment of curriculum, teaching and assessment

Assessment protocols

Managing the learning process

Learning methods

Teaching protocols

Recasting the curriculum

Relevance of curriculum to practice

Aligning Teaching and Assessment: The Key to Greatly Improved Graduate Quality and Sustainable Teaching Efficiency Curricula

Aligning Teaching and Assessment: The Key to Greatly Improved Graduate Quality and Sustainable Teaching Efficiency Complexity of the operative components

Aligning Teaching and Assessment: The Key to Greatly Improved Graduate Quality and Sustainable Teaching Efficiency Status quo

Aligning Teaching and Assessment: The Key to Greatly Improved Graduate Quality and Sustainable Teaching Efficiency

An Integrated Approach to Learning, Teaching and Assessment in a Healthcare Ethics Module Conclusions