Beschreibung:
The teaching of histology is evolving. The traditional approach to teaching histology in medical curricula has emphasized identification of cells and tissues, correlation with normal function, and application to disease particularly with regard to histopathology. This arrangement has served and satisfied medical schools and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for decades. Advances in technology and the gradual drive by the LCME and medical schools to emphasize cooperative learning and integration of learned material across courses in the medical school curriculum has resulted in two main changes: increasing use of technology, and group‐based approaches to teaching and learning. Virtual microscopy now complements or replaces optical microscopy in histology courses in many medical schools. More schools now incorporate table conference approaches in histology (for example, team‐, problem‐, and case‐based learning) courses. With these significant advances in the tools and teaching methods in histology, it is also perhaps necessary to examine the core rationale that determines the intrinsic content of histology courses in MD curricula. Should the degree program and its intended product shape the content of histology courses? Is histology a one‐size‐fits‐all course? Is integrated content only important in MD programs? With increasing constraints in curricular time, the challenge for faculty is to define content that combines cooperative learning, technology, and program objectives. Histology for medicine needs to be defined in terms of its application to clinical practice rather than simply a tissue identification skill and basis for histopathology. For medical schools, such redefined content has a bigger and more critical role to play in the future for clinicians than previous content iterations have had.