Open to All? Faculty Development for Equitable Participation in Clinical Teaching

School:  Edinburgh Medical School [Medical Education]

Team Members: Tim Fawns, Derek Jones, Gill Aitken, Aleksandra Gulasaryan, Ian Lee

Abstract

This project examines the relationship between faculty development and the widening participation

agenda in health professions education. Significant focus has been placed on getting students from disadvantaged backgrounds into university and, more recently, on their success and progress at university and beyond. Very little attention has been paid to equity in participation in teaching, faculty development or postgraduate study. Through pedagogy and practice, teachers can address issues of diversity, difference, and inclusion. The extant literature, however, points to challenges and constraints for many educators in relation to widening participation. Faculty development could play a significant role in supporting equitable higher education. Our project builds on a Scottish multi-centre study exploring the organisational context and individual experience of medical education faculty development. We will use existing data, and generate new data, to answer the following questions about current faculty development in the Edinburgh Medical School:

• How does it support inclusive educational practices and pedagogies?
• In what ways does it include or exclude individual teachers?

This research will be augmented by a series of reflective workshops for teachers, faculty developers, and students to engage with and contextualise our findings. The outcomes of these  events will form the basis for instituting meaningful change in two postgraduate clinical education programmes in the Medical School (taught programmes and CPD) to support widening participation, and to highlight where policies may need to be adjusted. We anticipate that the findings will be transferable beyond health to other professional groups (e.g. teaching, law, social  work).

Final Project Report

Download the final project report (PDF)