Description
The learning community model stresses
student engagement, a student-centered learning
environment and generally links formal and informal
curricula. Learning
communities have been implemented at a number of
undergraduate institutions.
Evidence shows that participation in a learning
community increases students’ educational satisfaction
and, in some cases, improves performance as indicated by a
higher GPA and retention rates.
The concept of learning communities has not been
widely applied at the professional school level although
there are over a dozen medical schools currently using
this model. In
this audio seminar, we will explore the relevance of
learning communities to medical education and the growing
interest in this model of student-centered learning.
Dr. Phye and Dean Solow will present the history of
learning communities and their foundation in student
development theory. Different
models and implementation strategies will be presented as
well as the benefits and challenges of learning
communities. A
case study of the learning communities at the University
of Iowa Carver College of Medicine will highlight the
benefits accrued---vertical class integration, student
leadership, faculty and peer mentoring, service learning
and the positive impact of physical space on social
behavior—since their implementation in 1999.
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