Debate

An innovative approach to developing the reflective skills of medical students

Penny Henderson and Martin H Johnson

Department of Anatomy, Downing Street, Cambridge, UK, CB2 3DY

author email corresponding author email

BMC Medical Education 2002, 2:4doi:10.1186/1472-6920-2-4

Published:	10 May 2002

Abstract

Background

Development of the reflective skills of medical students is an acknowledged objective of medical education.

Description

Description of an educational exercise which uses an email-based process for developing the reflective skills of undergraduate medical students. Student quotations illustrate learning outcomes qualitatively.

Discussion

The process described is immediate, direct, linked to learning objectives, enables rapid responses to be given to the students individually, and is followed by group sharing of learning. It provides a rigorous and robust feedback loop for students. It is relatively economic for teachers and incidentally benefits curriculum design and evolution. The approach supports development of a reflective approach to learning.