Presented at the 2000 APIII Conference Return to 2000 Abstract Index
USING THE NEW TO REVITALIZE AND CAPITALIZE ON THE BEST OF THE OLD: VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY ONLINE PATHOLOGY FOR SECOND YEAR MEDICAL STUDENTS
Virginia Commonwealth
University
Medical College of Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Katherine Stevenson, MEd
Katherine Stevenson,
MEd, Enrique Gerszten, MD, and Hattie Wyche
Background: Historically, educational and administrative materials for our pathology labs have been created as static documents and distributed to our medical students in hard-copy, manual form. Traditional classroom lectures have been supplemented using typical visual aids, gross specimens, glass slides, and kodachromes illustrating gross and microscopic images.
New Medical School policy requiring all entering students to purchase computers, and our Department's mission to enhance teaching through a case-based, integrated curriculum utilizing web technology, led to our development of open-access, online, dynamic pathology lecture and laboratory supplements.
Design: Working collaboratively only since July 2000, our faculty and one instructional designer/web developer are using our standard office equipment and inexpensive, standard software, IBM Personal Computer 300GL, Agfa Arcus II scanner, Microsoft FrontPage 2000, Adobe PhotoShop 5.0, Microsoft PowerPoint, to develop online, dynamic supplements that directly support lectures and case-based, classroom laboratories. Additionally, the online supplements link to related medical education resources within our University, as well as to the Internet. The supplements are part of our Department of Pathology Web site.
Our online supplements include educational and course administrative materials: evaluation forms; case-study lab images with their descriptions; syllabi, lectures; PowerPoint presentations; instructor announcements; and hyperlinked lab schedules. Web and lab technicians are available to support the students and instructors in their use of the Web site.
Results: Preliminary student response has been favorable. Increasing numbers of students are now using our website, and are communicating with us for both web support and improvement.
Conclusion: Our first step in development, to make current lab content available online, is almost concluded. The next steps are to:
- develop and publish updated materials in a standard format using sound instructional design principles
- expand the integration of online content with the medical curriculum (courses last about one month and are constructed by subject matter i.e., cardiovascular system, respiratory system, renal system, etc.)
- increase collaborative work with each faculty member assigned, in each subject matter, as Pathologist of the Course
- measure and target usage and educational effectiveness of online materials
- support management decision-making processes and inform new strategic development efforts in pathology education.
