Novel teaching–learning and assessment tools to complement competency-based medical education in postgraduate training

Abstract

Medical and educational techniques and approaches have evolved globally over the past few decades. The modern approach is more learner-centred, with a focus on the acquisition of skills. The recently implemented competency-based medical education (CBME) for the National Medical Commission (NMC) undergraduate course curriculum is also competency-based rather than an outcome-based traditional curriculum. It is vital to embrace innovative teaching–learning and educational strategies to achieve the aspiration of CBME. This article provides a list of some of the newer tools and their perceived advantages and challenges and serves as a guide for using these methods effectively to meet the objectives of CBME as proposed by the NMC. Virtual teaching, learning from digital resources, objective-structured practical and clinical examination, flipped classroom, case-based learning, serious gaming, simulation-based learning and learning from role-plays and portfolios emerged as novel instructional strategies.