Many colleges and universities--including medical schools--are developing Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) as a means to provide meaningful faculty development. FLCs are voluntary, multi-disciplinary, year-long, structured communities of practice of size 8-12, meeting monthly (or bi-weekly) with a facilitator as a member, and include building community and the development of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.
This session will share the results of an attempt to measure the effectiveness of a Faculty Learning Community that adopted a synchronous, web-based format, supported by e-mail and learning management tools for both on- and off-campus clinical faculty at a medical school, including those preceptors in remote areas of the state. Effectiveness measures include both qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (pre/post survey) assessments of the meaningfulness of this faculty development experience.
In this FridayLive!, the presenters and guests will discuss these findings and share experiences with and suggestions for using web conference technology in online Faculty Learning Communities. The participants in the presentation will be able to answer the following questions at the conclusion of the session:
- How does a Faculty Learning Community differ from other types of faculty development programs?
- How effective was the online Faculty Learning Community in meeting the needs of the university medical school?
- What critical elements need to be considered when selecting web conferencing technology for faculty development (i.e., Faculty Learning Community)?
- What role did the co-facilitators, university administrator, faculty developer/consultant play in creating an effective online Faculty Learning Community?
- Is an online Faculty Learning Community appropriate for all?
- What lessons were learned and what changes, if any, will be made with future online FLCs?
