Portfolios and Competency

On Thursday evening our #meded chat will be on the topic of portfolios and demonstrating competency. In advance of our discussion it would be good to use this space to write a little about your experience as a student, or doctor (and other health professionals are welcome too!) How do you feel about the rise of the competency model of medical education which is replacing the apprenticeship model? What are the benefits, if any? What are the main problems with the way portfolios are executed? Have you had any positive experiences through portfolios?
It’s often stated that a competency model is needed to satisfy the demands of wider society. Do you think that there is any truth in this? Why do you think portfolios and competency have been accepted by the leaders of medical education with seeming enthusiasm, whilst many on the ground seem disappointed and disillusioned with the experience?

Social Media and Networks in Medical Education: Workshop at ASME

Image: Communication by DailyPic http://www.flickr.com/photos/dailypic/1459055735/

 

The 2011 ASME conference will take place in  Edinburgh in July. The good news is that I, Natalie and Annalisa will be leading a workshop during the conference on using social media and networks in medical education. Here is the conference abstract. Please come along!

“Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have seen exceptionalgrowth in users in the past 5 years. But how can these and other social mediatools benefit medical education?The facilitators of this workshop will sharetheir experiences of working with students to introduce these tools toundergraduate medical courses in Cardiff andDundee.

In this workshop we will talk about what worked and what could have workedbetter. We will give you the opportunity to explore ideas for new ways oflearning with students.There will be time for discussion on issues such as :
Is a WordPress blog more useful than a Blackboard module?
How social is social bookmarking?
Will VLEs be replaced by PLEs?
How can social media help medical education researchers?
How can we manage and develop our own digital identity?

Our aim is to develop a network of educators and students who want tocollaborate and share learning on the use of social media in medical education.We will develop public areas to support dissemination of best practice, andalso work to establish a research agenda in this new area.”