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Developing Core Competencies in First Year Medical Students: Peer Presentations of Case Studies in Neurobiology

In recent years the American Association of Medical Colleges and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education have placed increased emphasis on developing core competencies in trainees. Such competencies are meant to reflect characteristics that, ideally, will be displayed by every graduate upon completion of training. Here we describe a classroom innovation consisting of student‐led peer presentations of neurologic case studies that occurs during weeks 5 and 6 of a seven‐week medical neurobiology course for first year medical students. After completing study of major sensory/motor pathways comprising CNS functional systems, students are divided into small groups and randomly assigned a classic neurology case problem. After brief basic instruction in neurology case study problem solving, groups are given class time to work on presentations that they will give to one another. Our experience is that students bring a great deal of creative energy to this endeavor and that the exercise has been favorably received by most. In addition, we note that developing core competencies such as strong peer‐communication and teamwork, problem‐solving and the ability to apply a knowledge base to medical problems are strengthened by student participation in this exercise. Thus, in addition to facilitating the learning of challenging material, this classroom innovation is also consistent with the shift towards competency‐based education.