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Studying with the cloud: the use of online Web-based resources to augment a traditional study group format

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2015

Teresa Chan*
Affiliation:
Division of Emergency Medicine, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
Serena Sennik
Affiliation:
Division of Emergency Medicine, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
Amna Zaki
Affiliation:
Division of Emergency Medicine, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
Brendon Trotter
Affiliation:
Division of Emergency Medicine, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
*
Correspondence to: Dr. Teresa Chan, Rm 254 McMaster Clinic, Hamilton General Hospital, 237 Barton Street East, Hamilton, ON L8L 2X2; teresa.chan@medportal.ca.

Abstract

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Cloud-based applications such as Google Docs, Skype, Dropbox, and SugarSync are revolutionizing the way that we interact with the world. Members of the millennial generation (those born after 1980) are now becoming senior residents and junior attending physicians. We describe a novel technique combining Internet- and cloud-based methods to digitally augment the classic study group used by final-year residents studying for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada examination. This material was developed by residents and improved over the course of 18 months. This is an innovation report about a process for enhanced communication and collaboration as there has been little research to date regarding the augmentation of learner-driven initiatives with virtual resources.

Résumé

Les applications fondées sur l’informatique en nuage, telles que Google Docs, Skype, Dropbox et SugarSync, révolutionnent la manière dont les gens interagissent avec le monde. Les membres de la génération Y (ceux qui sont nés après 1980) deviennent maintenant résidents séniors ou médecins traitants juniors. Sera décrite ici une nouvelle technique associant Internet et l’infonuagique, en vue d’enrichir, par des ressources électroniques, le traditionnel groupe d’étude, une formule de révision utilisée par les résidents sortants afin de se préparer aux examens du Collège royal des médecins et chirurgiens du Canada. Le matériel a été conçu par des résidents et amélioré sur une période de 18 mois. Il s’agit d’un rapport sur l’innovation à propos d’un processus visant à améliorer les communications et la collaboration puisqu’il s’est fait peu de recherche jusqu’à maintenant sur l’enrichissement des initiatives amorcées par les apprenants, à l’aide de ressources virtuelles.

Type
Brief Educational Report
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians 2015 

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