Twelve tips for developing and implementing curriculum in dedicated ‘collaborative classrooms’

Abstract

Many health professional schools may be investing time and resources on dedicated educational spaces intended to promote collaborative learning. Alone, innovative physical space or technologies are not sufficient to ensure success in this. Lesson plans informed by collaborative praxis, individual motivation, faculty development, learner feedback, and team interactions also play a necessary and substantial role. We have used faculty observations, quantitative and qualitative student evaluation data, and the existing educational literature to provide twelve tips on leveraging curricular content, activity setup, physical space, learner behavior, and faculty facilitation to make the most of collaborative learning spaces.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

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Notes on contributors

Douglas McHugh

Douglas McHugh, PhD is an Associate Professor, Director of the Scholarly Reflection and Concentration/Capstone course, and a founding faculty member of the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, Quinnipiac University, CT, USA.

Julie M. Hall

Julie M. Hall, PhD is an Associate Professor at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, Quinnipiac University, CT, USA.

Katherine M. McLeod

Katherine M. McLeod, PhD is an Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of the Scholarly Reflection and Concentration/Capstone course, at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, Quinnipiac University, CT, USA.

Carl J. Kovelowski

Carl J. Kovelowski, PhD is an Assistant Professor at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, Quinnipiac University, CT, USA.

Anthony M. Payne

Anthony M. Payne, PhD is an Associate Professor and Director of the Homeostasis and Allostasis course at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Seton Hall University, NJ, USA. He is a former founding faculty member of the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine.