Epic Think Tank
Health and e-learning
Part 1: Challenges of 'e' to tradition
Medical knowledge is, of course, only one area of learning within
the NHS, but it is of key importance. And here e-learning, with
its emphasis on learner-centred delivery and access to a widened
pool of informational sources, was seen to be at odds with the whole
orthodoxy of traditional medical education.
A shift in the traditional relationship between teachers and the
taught, with everyone within the system functioning as both consumer
and producer of knowledge, was identified as 'one of the mentality
shifts that we have to achieve'. However this shift inevitably highlights
the inherent contestability of knowledge.
To take the example of IVIMEDS; with learners liberated from the
confines of having to study in a single medical school, under a
known national jurisdiction and within a particular cultural tradition,
medical knowledge could notionally cease to be traceable back to
a set textbook or authorised source. The value of qualifications
would be undermined, if not the credibility of the whole profession,
if that knowledge were seen to be any less than authoritative.
Or would it? A common-sense answer proposed to this problem was
that content in medical education be divided from the
learning process. Efforts at accreditation would focus on the
former, providing a base level quality standard for learning objects
allowed into the system. Learners could then take responsibility
for the quality of the learning package they could put together,
rather than having to make judgements at the 'component' level.
Critical to the success of such an approach, of course, would be
the support given to learners, in the way of mentoring, opportunities
for collaborative learning, etc. The role of tutor would have to
change. The priority, under such a changed system would be to developing
capabilities in learners for making the most of the resources available
to them.
Along with the undoubted benefits of such a system, a potential
was seen to arise here for bureaucratic process - with the attendant
danger that we could lose sight of the importance of relationships
to the process of learning.
And here was seen to lie another significant area of challenge
posed by 'e' to traditional stuctures - its tendency to shift the
balance of such relationships; relationships between teachers and
students, between clinicians and nurses, and even those between
healthcare professionals and patients.
While, as in the example above, such a shift can bring potential
dangers, this tencency also means that e-learning has great potential
to act as an agent for change.
'How can we get people to do things differently?' is the constant
cry of those who lead large organisations. True, for many it is
difficult to credit that web-delivery of training can make a significant
difference in the case of a problem as large and intractable as
that of human nature. However, it is a compelling argument that
the most effective way of changing a person's behaviour is to change
the context in which that person operates. And e-learning is all
about changing the context.
his was seen very clearly as the discussion moved to opportunities
and practicalities in using e-learning within the Health Service...
Next>>
Background
Part
2 Opportunities and practicalities
Part 3 Looking for quick wins
Afterword
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