Faculty development is conceptualised as the collaborative education and development of faculty in order to improve student learning and ultimately patient care. We take a broad view of faculty development as activities that promote a serious, thoughtful, challenging and critical view of teaching and learning and the education context more broadly. This is firmly grounded in the evidence base from the literature. Central to our mission is a collaborative, collegiate approach to teaching and learning.
Our focus extends from the principles of teaching and learning, practical applications of this to teaching and supervision through to leadership, culture and diversity in the medical school and NHS. Our workshops and talks are run by experienced educators and clinicians, junior doctors who are developing innovative approaches and students. We aim to challenge each other to think about the educational decisions we are making and the rationale underpinning this and to expand and develop our thinking and practice in ways that are well grounded in the evidence.
Our faculty development activities take the form of Faculty Days, site based workshops, online material, an annual conference, teaching awards and recognition and policy input. Faculty development is most successful when it is designed around the needs of faculty and students and as such the programme that we have developed is collaborative, flexible and aims to fit the needs of each group as required. It is also designed to be sustainable and to build capacity within the faculty body. This means that the faculty development team aims to be responsive to each group or site and designs workshops and faculty days as required. In addition, many events are co-ordinated by faculty, with support and input from the FD team.
Faculty Development encompasses education, training, scholarship and support in order to enhance teaching in all settings pertinent to the MBBS. It includes academic staff in the biosciences and medicine, clinical staff and professional staff on all sites at which MBBS students are taught.