Miniworkshops: an alternative educational strategy

Dear Editor,

I read with interest the article by Drs Schneiderhan, Guetterman and Dobson, curriculum development.1 This is a timely and well-written paper that is pertinent for Family Medicine clerkship coordinators.

I would like to suggest another instructional strategy, the miniworkshop, which may be of interest to family medicine educators.

Miniworkshops consist of a brief didactic lecture followed by small-group exercises.2

For example, after a lecture on hypothyroidism for 30 min, learners are divided into groups of three (triads, being the ideal group size) and given cases with short-answer questions. The instructor walks around and assists any groups that are struggling. At the end, a closure discussion is held and sample answers displayed.

I have proposed and used this format in the clerkship setting and found it to be superior to either lecture or exercises alone.

The didactic (non-interactive) lecture provides a foundation of knowledge while the small-group exercises enable application of learning.

Linked articles

Letter to the Editor | 1 October 2019

Response to letters by M. Jawad Hashim and Chuan Zou: Advancing curriculum development and medical education research

Margaret Dobson

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Footnotes

• Competing interests: None declared.

• Patient consent for publication: Not required.

• Provenance and peer review: Commissioned; internally peer reviewed.

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References

1. Schneiderhan J, Guetterman TC, Dobson ML, et al. Curriculum development: a how to primer. Fam Med Com Health 2019; 7.

   doi:10.1136/fmch-2018-000046•Google Scholar
2. Hashim MJ. Miniworkshops – a new instructional strategy consisting of brief interactive educational sessions with hands-on exercises and feedback. 2011;

   Google Scholar

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