Peripheral Vision: Exploring Newcomers’ Perceptions of their Teacher- Learner Relationships in a Medical Community of Practice

The purpose of this study was to explore third-year medical students’ perceptions of their teacher-learner relationships with their clinical educators

Exposing Medical Education’s Hidden Curriculum through an Exploration of Teacher-Learner Relationships

The purpose of this study was to explore third-year medical students’ perceptions of their teacher-learner relationships with their clinical educators

Medical Students’ Preparedness for Apprenticeship Learning

This research investigated medical student and clinical faculty perceptions of preparedness for learning in the clinical setting. It also explored their beliefs about the ways in which the curriculum promotes or fails to promote preparedness for apprenticeship learning

A Case Study of National Financial Literacy Programs for Women

The purpose of this research study is to explore (case study) in-depth the pedagogy of financial literacy programs for women and how these programs address their educational needs

The Use of Arts Based Projects in Clinical Education

The purpose of this research roundtable is to explore the use of arts-based pedagogies in the clinical post-conference setting

Using Jazz as a Metaphor to Teach Improvisational Communication Skills

Metaphor helps humans understand complex concepts by “mapping” them onto accessible concepts. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using jazz as a metaphor to teach senior medical students improvisational communication skills, and to understand student learning experiences. The authors designed a month-long course that used jazz to teach improvisational communication. A sample of fourth-year medical students (N = 30) completed the course between 2011 and 2014. Evaluation consisted of quantitative and qualitative data collected pre- and post-course, with comparison to a concurrent control group on some measures. Measures included: (a) Student self-reports of knowledge and ability performing communicative tasks; (b) blinded standardized patient assessment of students’ adaptability and quality of listening; and (c) qualitative course evaluation data and open-ended interviews with course students. Compared to control students, course students demonstrated statistically significant and educationally meaningful gains in adaptability and listening behaviors. Students’ course experiences suggested that the jazz components led to high engagement and creativity, and provided a model to guide application of improvisational concepts to their own communication behaviors. Metaphor proved to be a powerful tool in this study, partly through enabling increased reflection and decreased resistance to behaviors that, on the surface, tended to run counter to generally accepted norms. The use of jazz as a metaphor to teach improvisational communication warrants further refinement and investigation