Does Assessment of Self-Regulated Learning and Metacognition in Surgical Residents Provide Insight to Performance on High Stakes Standardized Examinations? A Pilot Study

Abstract

The concept of lifelong learning has received widespread attention in the healthcare field and in numerous other industries due to the sheer volume of new and expanding knowledge and information continuously created by one hand and rendered obsolete by the other. As a result, physicians need to be engaged in lifelong learning to improve, expand, and maintain mastery of their knowledge, skills, and competencies. For physicians, lifelong learning is a process that begins in medical school, extends into residency, and continues throughout one’s professional life [1]. Its importance is seen in a statement from the American Medical Association’s Principles of Medical Ethics, which states “a physician must continue to study, apply, and advance scientific knowledge [ 2]. This is underscored by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in its Common Program Requirements document, which states: “Residents and faculty members must demonstrate an understanding and acceptance of their personal role in…attention to lifelong learning” [3]. In her article on portfolios in radiology residency education, Deitte points to changes in training over the past ten years, which include more focus on self-directed learning, evidence-based practice, and outcomes-based assessment. She states that these changes are the result of demand for physician accountability and documentation of a commitment to lifelong learning [4]. As a result, the medical education system is expected to prepare physicians to participate in lifelong learning activities. However, engaging in lifelong learning is based on successfully developing and applying two skill areas: self- directed learning and metacognition