Medical Education and Leadership

med students listening to a lecture

To provide students with a basic understanding of and facility with educational theory and techniques.

Program Objectives

  • Describe different theories of adult learning and how they translate to medical education
  • Analyze the instructional design of educational interventions
  • Apply educational technology to enhance learning
  • Demonstrate the ability to effectively give and receive feedback
  • Analyze team learning scenarios in order to enhance team learning
  • Apply the foundational concepts of medical education in teaching, scholarship, and leadership
  • Demonstrate teaching a skill
  • Demonstrate small group teaching
  • Demonstrate teaching around a case presentation
  • Perform a medical education or leadership scholarly activity
  • Compare & Contrast the intersection of the educator with the leader and its implications for career trajectory
  • Describe a plan for career-long personal development incorporating the concept of leadership and the core values associated with it

Meet Your Medical Education & Leadership Directors



Program Activities

Required First & Second Year Activities

  • Attend Lecture/Workshop Series
  • Participate in an Experiential Opportunity in the summer following first year
    • Students must submit a project proposal including scope of work, a timeline, objectives/goals, and the organization/mentor with which the student will be working, including contact information
    • After project completion, students are required to submit a 4-6 page reflection paper to include the student’s project scope, the role the student played in the project, how the project changed from the original proposal, and reflections on the experience

Other Medical Education Leadership Related Opportunities

  • Develop/participate in “Pearl Panels”
  • Attend AAMC meetings, national or regional
  • Attend Faculty Development Series - CMEI (monthly)
  • Participate as class Curriculum Representative or POM Representative
  • Participate as the Honor Code or MSEC (Medical Student Evaluation Committee) representative
  • Participate in the Prematriculation Program
  • Serve as ISCOPES representative
  • Participate as a coordinator for the GW “Day in the Life” program, “Camp Cardiac” or “Camp Neuro”
  • Participate in the Big Sib Program
  • Participate in the Thalamus Anatomy Tutorial Club
  • Become school OSR (organization of student representatives) representative (AAMC -Association of American Medical Colleges)
  • Become involved in the AMA education section, AMSA, or other organizations that attend to issues in medical student/resident education
  • Become involved in developing GW’s learning communities and in the national Learning Community Institute student council
  • Conduct original education research, resulting in presentations at national meetings and in publications

Required Third & Fourth Year Activities

  • Scholarly Project will be related to Track of study
  • Senior Elective - IDIS 351: Clinician as a Medical Educator

Lecture/Workshop Series (attendance is mandatory)

Topics – Years I & II

  • Adult Learning Theories
  • Instructional Design
  • Application of Educational Technology
  • Evaluating yourself as a learner
  • Getting the most out of feedback
  • Medical Educational Research & Scholarship
  • Promoting Team Learning
  • Leadership Opportunities in Medical Education

Summer Programs/Senior Electives

Current Literature (as a course primer)

  1. Journals/Publications
    1. Teaching and Learning in Medicine:  www.tandfonline.com/toc/htlm20/current
    2. Academic Medicine:  www.academicmedicine.org
    3. Medical Education: www.mededuc.com
    4. Medical Teacher:  www.medicalteacher.org
    5. Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE) Guide: www.amee.org/publications/amee-guides
    6. BMJ guides: http://www.bmj.com/thebmj
    7. Medical Education Online: https://wrlc-gwahlth.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=alma9912249813004101&context=L&vid=01WRLC_GWAHLTH:01WRLC_GWAHLTH&search_scope=MyInst_and_CI&tab=Everything&lang=en
    8. Journal of Graduate Medical Education: https://wrlc-gwahlth.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid...
  2. Texts/Monographs
    1. Swanwick, T. (2014). Understanding medical education : evidence, theory, and practice(Second edition.). Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley Blackwell.
    2. Enhancing flexibility in graduate medical education. (2007). Rockville, Md.]: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration.
    3. Newble, D., & Cannon, R. (2001). A handbook for medical teachers  (4th ed.). Dordrecht ;: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
    4. Stegers‐Jager, K., Cohen‐Schotanus, J., & Themmen, A. (n.d.). Motivation, learning strategies, participation and medical school performance. Medical Education, 46(7), 678–688. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2923.2012.04284.x
    5. Edwards, J., Friedland, J., & Bing-You, R. (2002). Residents’ teaching skills . New York: Springer Pub. Co.
    6. Thomas, P., Thomas, P., Kern, D., Hughes, M., & Chen, B. (2016). Curriculum development for medical education : a six-step approach  (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.

*Other educational opportunities and activities to enrich students’ experiences may be added to the curriculum during the program, per the discretion of the Medical Education & Leadership Scholarly Concentration Directors.