Integrated teaching in medical education aims to coordinate different teaching activities to ensure effective learning. It is needed due to the growth and fragmentation of medical disciplines over time. Integration can be horizontal between disciplines of the same phase, vertical between disciplines of different phases, or both. Learning modules are planned units that take a multidisciplinary approach to a topic, problem, or task. They specify objectives, teaching methods, resources, and evaluation. Module development involves choosing a focus, identifying departments, planning teaching and assessment, and revising based on feedback. Benefits include minimizing contradictions and repetition for students while allowing collaboration for teachers. Drawbacks can include modules becoming too complex or fragmented learning.
6. Objectives
• Define integrated teaching.
• Justify the need for integrated teaching.
• Enumerate the directions of integrated teaching.
• Define learning module.
• List types of learning modules.
• List steps of module development.
• State the drawbacks of integrated teaching.
7. Concept of Integration
• Integrate which means “make whole”
• Integration denotes “coordination of different activities
to ensure harmonious functioning”
8. Growth and Fragmentation of Medical Science:
• Disciplines in earliest medical colleges and the medical student.
Easy to
Integrate
Medicine/Surgery
Pathology
Anatomy
9. Growth and Fragmentation of Medical Science:
• Disciplines in current medical colleges and the medical student .
Medicine/Surgery/Obst& Unable to
Gyn/Paeds/Ortho/Opthal/ENT/ integrate
Radio/Dermat/Psych/Others.
Path/Micro/Pharmac/ PSM/ FMT
Anatomy/Physiology/Biochemistry
10. • Medical educationists all over the world recognize that
integration in medical education is one of the major
educational reforms required.
• The world Summit on Medical Education (1993)
identified “the disjunction between medical education
and the medical practice as one of the major problems.”
• The Medical Council of India (1997) has also strongly
recommended integration in undergraduate medical
education.
11. Integration of medical
education
• Integration in education can be defined as the
coordination of different teaching-learning activities to
ensure the harmonious functioning of the educational
process for more effective learning by students.
12. Purpose
• The purpose of integration is to increase the effectiveness of
the teaching-learning process.
13. Piece-meal: e.g. tuberculosis
Phar Paeds
Surgery
Medicine
Obs &Gyn
C
O
N
F
U
Patho S
I
Micro O
N
14. Makes a whole:
B
E
T
T
E
R
U
N
D
Phar Paed E
R
Medicine S
T
A
Obs & N
Gynac D
I
N
G
15. Directions of integration :
• Horizontal : Two or more disciplines of any phase of MBBS curriculum (pre-
clinical, para-clinical or clinical).
• Vertical : Two or more disciplines of two or more phases of MBBS
curriculum.
Clinical Phase
Para-Clinical Phase
Pre-Clinical Phase
16. Examples:
• Horizontal: Combined teaching-learning of renal
structure and function by Anatomy and Physiology.
• Vertical: Combined teaching-learning of renal failure by
Pathology and Medicine departments.
• Both: Combined teaching-learning of renal failure by the
departments of Physiology, Pathology, Medicine and
Surgery.
17. Learning Modules:
• A module is a planned unit of educational experiences which is
multidisciplinary.
A module should include:
List of participating departments,
Learning objectives,
Alternative teaching-learning methods and media,
Time-table,
List of learning resources.
Evaluation plan,
18. Types:
1) Topic based modules: Developed from multi-disciplinary
topics, e.g. UTI, DM, Tuberculosis, Hypertension.
2) Problem based modules: Developed from multi-disciplinary
clinical problems, e.g. acute abdomen, headache, shock.
3) Task based modules: Derived from multi-disciplinary tasks,
e.g. first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
19. Steps of Module Development:
1) Choose the topic, problem or task (must know).
2) Identify the participating departments.
3) State the learning objectives.
4) Plan evaluation.
5) Choose alternative T-L methods.
6) Identify learning resources and T-L media.
7) Plan time table.
8) Trial implementation.
9) Revise by feedback.
20. Benefits of Learning Modules:
For Students :
• As there is unified presentation of common medical problems, contradictory
concepts and opinions could be minimized by planning.
• Irrelevant areas also can be eliminated at the planning stage.
• There is also avoidance of the repetition of subject matter.
• Students are able to observe good examples of multi-disciplinary cooperation.
For Teachers :
• Provides an opportunity not only for inter-departmental cooperation but also
for sharing ideas and learning from other disciplines.
• Research problems can be identified and research projects can be initiated.
21. Problems of INTEGRATED TEACHING
1) Lack of adequate weightage in evaluation renders it irrelevant from
achievement point of view.
2) Too many modules may result in complex schedules that few may
able to keep up with.
3) Modular learning can also lead to fragmented learning of subjects and
fragmentation of assessment.
22. Objectives
• Define integrated teaching.
• Justify the need for integrated teaching.
• Enumerate the directions of integrated teaching.
• Define learning module.
• List types of learning modules.
• List steps of module development.
• State the drawbacks of modular learning.