Farlow J.L., London D.A., Doo F., Golden A., Pacl K., Patel A., Wadhwani A.

Version: March 25, 2014

It is an incredibly rewarding experience to be a student involved in curricular planning at your school. Your
participation is invaluable for ensuring that medical education is meeting the needs of your current and
future colleagues. As a busy medical student though, how are you supposed to learn all about medical
education theory and practice while handling your busy student schedule?

To enable you to more effectively participate in curricular planning at your school, this primer has been
designed as a crash course in medical education terminology, acronyms, and resources. We encourage you
to reach out to ask questions about your committee and its function, seek out mentors, and explore
resources to build on this foundational knowledge.

Please also provide feedback on this primer so that we can continue to improve this resource for future
medical students interested in improving the medical school learning experience.
Medical Education Curricular Fundamentals
A Primer for Medical Students Involved in Curricular Planning
MajorOrganizationsRelatedtoMedicalEducation:
AAMCAssociationofAmericanMedicalColleges
(representsaccreditedNorthAmericanmedicalschools,
majorteachinghospitalsandhealthsystems,andacademic
andscientificsocieties)
GEAGrouponEducationalAffairs
(AAMCcommunityfocusedonthecontinuumof
medicaleducation;subdividedintoregions)
GSAGrouponStudentAffairs
(AAMCcommunityfocusedonmedicalstudent
affairs;subdividedintoregions)
LCMELiaisonCommitteeonMedicalEducation
(accreditingbodyforallopathicmedicaleducationprograms)
ACGMEAccreditationCouncilforGraduate
MedicalEducation
(accreditingbodyforresidencyeducation/GMEprograms)
NBMENationalBoardofMedicalExaminers
(managestheUSMLE/UnitedStatesMedicalLicensing
Examinationandotherassessmentsofhealthprofessionals)
AMEEInternationalAssociationforMedical
EducationinEurope
(representsaworldwidenetworkofthoseinvolvedinthe
continuumofmedicaleducation)

AcronymsRelatedtotheContinuumofMedicalEducation:
UME/UGMEUndergraduateMedicalEducation
(forpostgraduatestudiesleadinguptoamedicaldegree)
GMEGraduateMedicalEducation(forresidency)
CMEContinuingMedicalEducation(forpracticing
physicians)
AAMCCurriculumInventoryandReports
(CIR):
https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/medaps/curriculumreports
/#.UrcqOGRDvzE
Premierbenchmarkingandreportingtooloncontent,
structure,delivery,andassessmentofmedicalschool
curricula.IncludesCurriculumReportsforschools(e.g.
contacthours,clerkshipweeks,etc.)

CurriculumInventoryStandards:
https://www.mededportal.org/simplebinary/300860/icollabo
rative498.pdf?contentId=300858
Containscommoninstructionalandassessment
methods,asendorsedbyMedBiquitous,theAAMCand
theLCME

LCMEStandards:
http://www.lcme.org/publications.htm

MedEdPortal:http://www.mededportal.org
FreeAAMCsuiteofservicestodisseminateeducational
tools;includesbothpeerreviewedandnonpeer
reviewedresources

*IIMEGlossaryofMedicalEducationTerms:
http://www.iime.org/glossary.htm
Glossary prepared by the Institute for International
Medical Education

AMEEMedicalEducationGuides:
http://www.amee.org/publications/ameeguides
MEDEDACRONYMS MEDEDRESOURCES
Acknowledgements: We would like to thank members of the AAMC Group on Educational Affairs and the leadership and staff
for the AAMC Organization of Student Representatives for their assistance and mentorship in developing this document.
Farlow J.L., London D.A., Doo F., Golden A., Pacl K., Patel A., Wadhwani A. Version: March 25, 2014

ActiveLearningLearningstrategieswherestudentsassess
theirownlearningneeds;identify,analyze,andsynthesize
informationrelevanttothoselearningneeds;andassessthe
credibilityofinformationsources(LCMEStandardED5A)
AdultLearningTheoryAneducationaltheorythatcaters
curriculatowardadultlearners,orthosewhoareself
directed,goaloriented,relevancyoriented,andpractical;can
bringlifeexperience;anddesirerespect;ref:MalcomKnowles
AssessmentAsystemthatmeasuresthelevelofskillsor
knowledgeofalearner;contrastwithevaluation;see
CurriculumInventoryStandardsforassessmentmethods
CriterionReferencedvs.NormReferenced
CriterionreferencedPerformancejudgedonpre
determinedcriteriaofperformance;i.e.standard
NormreferencedPerformancejudgedonmeanand
standarddeviationofagroup;e.g.Bellcurve
Formativevs.SummativeAssessmentsandFeedback
FormativeOngoing,measuresdevelopment,coaching
SummativeObtainedatasinglepointintime;oftenatthe
endofthecourse
Reliabilityvs.Validity
ReliabilityAbilityofanassessmenttoproducethesameor
similarscoresonmultipleoccasionsorifgivenby
multipleassessors
ValidityExtenttowhichanassessmentmeasureswhatitis
supposedtomeasure
Scorevs.Standard
ScorePerformanceonanassessment
StandardAcceptablescoretoindicatedesiredlevelof
performance
CompetencyAnobservableabilityofaprofessionalthat
integratesmultiplecomponentssuchasknowledge,skills,
values,andattitudes(InternationalCBMECollaborators2009)
Competencybasedmedicaleducation(CBME)Anoutcomes
basedapproachtomedicaleducation(InternationalCBME
Collaborators2009)
CurriculumAneducationalplanthatoutlinesobjectives,
content,andmethodsforlearning,teaching,andevaluation*
EntrustableProfessionalActivities(EPAs)Anactivitythatis
partoftheessentialworkofaprofession;requiresthe
integrationofknowledge,skills,andattitudeswithinan
authenticcontext;isindependentlyexecutablewithinagiven
timeframebyqualifiedpersonnel;andleadstoobservableand
measurableoutputs(tenCate2007)
EvaluationAsystemthatmeasurestherelevance,
effectiveness,andimpactofactivitiesinlightoftheir
objectives;canberelatedtostructure,process,oroutcome*;
contrastwithassessment
360DegreeEvaluationEvaluationcompletedfrommultiple
perspectives(e.g.resident,nurse,patient)
FlippedClassroomAformoflearningwherestudents
learnnewcontentindividuallyandusefacetoface
contacttimeforapplicationexercises
IntegratedTeachingAmethodofteachingthat
interrelatesorunifiessubjectsfrequentlytaughtin
separatecoursesordepartments*
VerticalIntegrationInterrelatesdisciplines
traditionallytaughtindifferentphasesofthe
curriculum,e.g.basicandclinicalscience
HorizontalIntegrationInterrelatesparalleldisciplines,
e.g.anatomyandhistology
InterprofessionalEducation(IPE)Whenstudents
fromtwoormoreprofessionslearnabout,fromand
witheachothertoenableeffectivecollaborationand
improvehealthoutcomes(WorldHealthOrganization
2010)
LearningDomainScopeofknowledge,skills,
competencies,andprofessionalcharacteristicswhich
canbecombinedintoonecluster*
LearnerCenteredEducationAmethodofteaching
whereteachersarefacilitators,andlearnersare
responsibleforidentifyingknowledgegaps,actively
participateinfulfillingthem,andkeepingtrackof
learninggains*
LearningObjectivewhatalearnerwillbeableto
knowordoaftertakingpartinaneducational
activity*;(an)assessment(s)shouldbeabletomeasure
progresstowardachievingalearningobjective
Canbebrokendownbyscale:
Institutional>Course>Session
Canbebrokendownbasedonlearningdomain:
Cognitive/Knowledge,Psychomotor/Skill,
Affective/Attitude
PedagogyMethodofteaching
ProblemBasedLearning(PBL)Useofcarefully
selectedanddesignedpatientcasesthatdemandfrom
thelearneracquisitionofcriticalknowledge,problem
solvingproficiency,selfdirectedlearningstrategies,
andteamparticipationskillsasthoseneededin
professionalpractice

;contrastwithteambased
learningandactivelearning;seeCurriculumInventory
Standardsforothercommoninstructionalmethods
TeamBasedLearning(TBL)Aformofcollaborative
learningthatfollowsaspecificsequenceofindividual
work,groupwork,andimmediatefeedback

;contrast
withproblembasedlearningandactivelearning;see
CurriculumInventoryStandardsforothercommon
instructionalmethods
MEDEDTERMINOLOGY