Dental Educators Complete The 2008 ADEA/AAL Institute For Teaching And Learning

Main Category: Dentistry
Article Date: 23 Jan 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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Nearly fifty new and prospective dental educators completed the 2008 Institute for Teaching and Learning (ITL) intensive faculty-development program, a partnership between the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) and the Academy for Academic Leadership (AAL). The ADEA/AAL ITL is conducted in collaboration with the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Dentistry and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) School of Dentistry. The program goal is to help recruit and retain dental faculty by preparing participants to become more effective teachers and develop other skills that will facilitate confidence, job satisfaction, and professional growth in the academic environment.

"With nearly 200 graduates, participation in the ITL has grown substantially since its inception in 2006," said AAL President N. Karl Haden, Ph.D. "New faculty as well as those transitioning from private practice to academic careers have found that the ADEA/AAL ITL prepares them with teaching skills necessary to understand and communicate with today's students." Dr. Haden also noted the important contributions of dental specialty organizations to ADEA/AAL ITL participation. Since 2006, the American Academy of Periodontology Foundation has funded 18 scholarships supporting attendance. In 2008, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Association of Orthodontists provided an additional nine scholarships.

The two-phase program at UMKC and UNC enabled 47 ADEA/AAL ITL Scholars to attain a higher level of excellence in evidence-based clinical and didactic modalities of dental education. The Scholars received hands-on experience with key teacher tasks such as evaluating student competence, presenting lectures, planning courses, constructing tests, facilitating small-group learning, working with difficult students, guiding students with questions, and providing feedback. Scholars also explored cognitive theories, learned strategies to enhance motivation, reviewed research on educational best practices, explored student learning styles, analyzed the characteristics of today's Gen Y learner, and completed teaching self-assessments. Additionally, the program offered a focused examination of Scholars' career development plans and concluded with extensive lessons on leading effective meetings and chairing academic committees.

The six and a half days of onsite classes were conducted in phases approximately two months apart, supplemented by complementary coursework and individual assignments during the intervening period. Nationally recognized experts in curriculum development, higher education administration, leadership, and pedagogy created and presented the ITL, including Prof. William Hendricson, Dr. Paula O'Neill, Dr. N. Karl Haden, and faculty and administrators at the respective schools of dentistry. For a list of the ADEA/AAL ITL Scholars who completed the 2008 program, view http://www.academicleaders.org/2008ITLScholars.html.

In 2009, the ADEA/AAL ITL program will be held at UNC, with phase I occurring August 20-23, and phase II October 23-25. For more information about the ADEA/AAL ITL, visit http://www.academicleaders.org, email info@academicleaders.org.

About ADEA

The American Dental Education Association (ADEA) is the voice of dental education. Its members include all U.S. and Canadian dental schools and many allied and postdoctoral dental education programs, corporations, faculty, and students. ADEA's mission is to lead individuals and institutions of the dental education community to address contemporary issues influencing education, research, and the delivery of oral health care for the health of the public. ADEA's activities encompass a wide range of research, advocacy, faculty development, meetings, and communications like the esteemed Journal of Dental Education, as well as the dental school admissions services AADSAS and PASS.

About AAL

Established in 2005 by Dr. N. Karl Haden, AAL provides customized professional development and consulting services for academic healthcare executives, educators, practitioners, institutions, and associations. AAL activities include leadership development, strategic planning, change management, team building, and curriculum development. In addition to the ITL, the AAL conducts the ADEA/AAL Institute for Allied Health Educators (IAHE).

AAL