Provides a highly practical and instructive guide for educators seeking to reform programmes and methods of teaching at established medical schools. Focused on practical problems, the book describes an approach to change involving the establishment of an innovative curricular track as a curriculum distinct from, but running parallel with, the already existing curriculum. To facilitate understanding of how the strategy works in real situations, the book draws upon ideas, experiences, and discussions presented during a conference attended by educators at eight institutions that have used the track approach as an agent of change, some for as long as 15 years. Though the institutions, located in China, Mexico, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United States of America, represent widely divergent needs and circumstances, all have used the track approach to reform medical education in the direction of greater relevance to health needs or by using problem-based learning in the educational process. The core text of the book sets out detailed case studies for each of the eight institutions. Presented in a spirit of frank self-analysis, these studies document the range of different problems, constraints, successes, mistakes and surprises that characterized the evolution of innovative track programmes in real situations. The reliance on first-hand experiences, whether at the Shanghai Second Medical University or Harvard Medical School, further helps account for the sense of excitement and innovation present throughout the book.

eng fre.

WHODOC

WHO monograph

4