Establishing an InteractiveWeb-based Neurosurgery Resident Curriculum: Challenges and Opportunities in the Time of COVID

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: During this unprecedent time, standard residency didactic conferences have been put on hold. Here we present our preliminary experience from a pilot program devised to optimize online resident education. METHODS: We moved our residency didactic conferences to an online format. In order to create a streamlined process for didactics, a curriculum website was created to house the conference schedule, learning objectives, presentations, reading assignments, and assessments. Assigned reading topics, including any relevant publications were posted in advance of weekly didactics conference. It is known that spaced repetition improves recall. Therefore, quizzes are posted at the 1 week, and 3 week intervals after the lecture to prime recall and enhance retention of content. The lectures themselves were optimized for learning with active learning techniques such as case-based discussion, polling and games. RESULTS: Residents prepare by reading the relevant material in advance of the lecture, and complete an Individual Readiness Assurance Test (iRAT). This new program was reviewed well by both faculty and residents participating in conferences. CONCLUSION: With residency programs continuing to evolve, the challenges of educating trainees in a vast and ever-growing fund of knowledge are not unique. Our experience offers an outline for using a web based platform as part of a rigorous system for residency didactics, while taking advantage of online teaching tools to create an engaging learning environment.