Three Questions For Teresa Patitucci, PhD

 From the 3/5/2021 newsletter

Three Questions For Teresa Patitucci, PhD 

Assistant Professor Cell Biology, Neurobiology & Anatomy 

Medical College of Wisconsin

What was most beneficial about KINETIC3? 

The KINETIC3 Training Program was valuable for learning more about becoming an effective medical educator. This included various modalities that can be used for effective classroom sessions, like different active learning strategies, as well as how to assess learning from those sessions and provide feedback to learners. As a foundational scientist, it was hugely valuable to me to participate in these workshops with those engaged in clinical teaching to get a better understanding of where students are headed once they are finished with my courses. It was great to learn teaching tips from other participants in the courses! 

 How have you incorporated what you learned?

 I incorporate what I learned in KINETIC3 all the time! I had some teaching training experience prior to KINETIC3 where I learned nuts and bolts of writing learning outcomes and assessment questions, but really benefitted from learning more about adult learning theory, incorporating character into teaching, culturally responsive teaching, and turning education into scholarship. I regularly apply these lessons when designing courses and sessions, looking for “teachable moments” and ways to go over material that is engaging to an adult learner and trying to put the concept in context of how they will use it in the wider world with their patients. As an anatomist training learners for direct patient care, I find it important not just to talk about a structure on the body, but also how we as a culture interact with that region of the body and when a patient may need extra reassurance. 

What was your capstone and where has it gone? 

My capstone project focused on using critical reflection of strengths and weaknesses to develop character and emotional intelligence. Our project examined reflective writing pieces from M1 learners enrolled in Cliical Human Anatomy on the MCW-CW campus. We learned a lot about the student experience during their first 6 months adjusting to medical school, specifically analyzing comments in the domains of emotional intelligence, wellbeing, and teamwork. Students received feedback from a faculty member and completed self-assessments as follow-ups to the reflective writing activities. Since then, my capstone partner and I have continued working on this project, now with the help of a Transformative Initiatives (TI2) Grant from the Kern Institute. We are enrolling students from campuses other than MCW-CW, adding discussion sessions, and evaluating impact of repeated critical reflection on selfawareness and professional identity.