Virtual Simulations for Dental Research Education

描述：(由申请人提供)本提案提出了为所有牙科学生发展教育经验的计划，这些教育经验将使他们参与实质性的基础、临床、教育、行为和健康服务研究经验，作为其牙科教育计划的常规部分，并评估这一教育创新对机构“文化”的几个方面的影响。各种基于计算机的研究模拟将战略性地整合到我们的DDS课程中，这些课程要求牙科学生经常使用科学方法在虚拟实验室、虚拟临床研究中心、虚拟社区和虚拟牙科学校开展基础、临床、行为、教育和卫生服务研究项目。换句话说，他们将进行足够的科学研究，以了解科学对牙科的作用，我们预测，这将增加他们在毕业后选择继续从事科学工作的可能性，对许多人来说，这将意味着从事循证实践，对其他人来说，将意味着追求牙科科学家和/或院士的职业生涯。报告提出了三个具体目标：1.确定、开发和“试点测试”一系列用于整个牙科课程的模拟研究“项目”；2.制定和实施一项计划，将这些研究模拟整合到牙科课程中；3.开发工具，并利用它们来评估这种教育干预对每个学校教育“文化”的特定方面的影响。我们的长期目标是(1)培养拥有从事牙科专业所必需的知识和技能的牙科毕业生，他们的职业生涯包括基础、临床、行为、教育和健康服务研究，无论他们的活动主要是在私人诊所还是在学术机构，无论他们的活动是在私人诊所还是在学术机构，以及(2)确定教育和教师发展干预措施，以提高牙科学校对科学的欣赏和科研成果。

DESCRIPTION: (provided by the applicant) This proposal presents plans to develop educational experiences for all dental students that will engage them in substantial basic, clinical, educational, behavioral, and health services research experiences as a regular part of their dental education program, and assess the impact of this educational innovation on several aspects of the institutional "culture". Numerous and varied computer-based research simulations will be strategically integrated into our DDS curriculum that require dental students to routinely use the methods of science to conduct basic, clinical, behavioral, educational, and health services research projects in virtual laboratories, virtual clinical research centers, virtual communities, and virtual dental schools. In other words, they will do enough scientific research to gain an appreciation of what science can do for dentistry, and we predict, will increase the likelihood that they will chose to remain involved with science after graduation, along a continuum that for many will mean engaging in evidence-based practice and for others will mean pursuing careers as dental scientists and/or academicians. Three Specific Aims are proposed: 1. Identify, develop, and "pilot test" a series of simulated research "projects" for use throughout the dental curriculum; 2. Develop and implement a plan to integrate these research simulations into the dental curriculum; and 3. Develop instruments and utilize them to assess the impact of this educational intervention on specific aspects of each school's educational "culture". Our long term goals are to (1) graduate dentists who have the necessary knowledge and skills to engage in the dental profession through careers that include basic, clinical, behavioral, educational, and health services research singly or in combination, whether they locate their activities mainly in private practices or in academic institutions, and (2) identify educational and faculty development interventions that will enhance the appreciation of science and the results of scientific research in dental schools.