Date of Award

Summer 6-30-2024

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Education

First Advisor

Julia Kirk

Abstract

Medical school faculty often lack formal training in effective teaching methods, posing a challenge to their ability to deliver high-quality education. To facilitate high-quality teaching and help medical faculty grow professionally, academically, and scholarly, the burden for training faculty was placed on each medical school’s faculty development program to become individualized to meet faculty, institutional, and ultimately, student needs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine medical faculty’s perception of faculty development at the Charles School of Medicine and their perceptions of how faculty development for medical educators made a difference in what medical faculty learned, how well they learned, and how well the faculty development added to the quality of medical faculty teaching. For the purpose of this study, I used adult learning theories, including andragogy, experiential learning, self-directed learning, and transformational learning, to frame this study. In this qualitative case study, I examined the perceptions of 30 medical faculty members participating in the faculty development program regarding the program's impact on their teaching practices and their development as self-directed learners. I triangulated questionnaire data, data from two one-hour observations, and document data. I found participants who initially held negative perceptions of faculty development expressed positive views after completing the program, emphasizing its effectiveness in improving their teaching skills and fostering a deeper understanding of adult learning principles. I found data that suggested the faculty development program at the Charles School of Medicine may be an effective tool for enhancing teaching skills and fostering self-directed learning.

Keywords

Adult Learning, Faculty Development, Medical Education, Medical Faculty, Self-Directed Learning, Teaching Quality

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