The University of Michigan is launching a new certificate program comprised of four massive open online courses (MOOCs) on the online edX platform designed to meet the needs of undergraduates, medical students, residents, and healthcare professionals at U-M and around the world. Through the Anatomy XSeries, these global learners will be able to develop a deep understanding of human anatomy at their own pace and have the option to earn a professional certificate of achievement.
This series of courses, developed by Professors B. Kathleen Alsup, Glenn M. Fox, John Stribley and Kelli A. Sullivan, provides a systems-based approach to the major functions and relationships between every major organ system.
The Anatomy XSeries aligns closely with the Medical School’s efforts to transform the future of medical education by providing learners with opportunities for self-direction and lifelong development.The first XSeries to be offered by the U-M Medical School in partnership with the Office of Academic Innovation, these courses offer learners an original, high-quality multimedia library that includes anatomical visuals that are not readily available in many parts of the world.
“Initiatives like the Anatomy XSeries represent our institutional commitment to academic excellence, inclusion, and innovation and our focus on enabling personalization at scale,” said James DeVaney, Associate Vice Provost for Academic Innovation. “Through a wide range of experiments focused on curricular innovation, medical school faculty continue to demonstrate their commitment to shaping the future of medicine and preparing learners to lead in a changing healthcare environment.”
These courses are the most recent faculty-led innovation developed in partnership between the Medical School and Academic Innovation. Innovations to date include: Instructional Methods in Health Professions Education, Service Transformed: Lessons in U.S. Veteran Centered Care, Introduction to Cataract Surgery, Understanding and Improving US Healthcare and Teaching and Assessing Clinical Skills.
“Consistent with our approach to transforming medical education – one that is systematic, measurable and shareable – we’re delighted to see our learning community responding to the flexibility and creativity that MOOCs are bringing to our education programs and to learners and educators around the world,” said Joseph Kolars, M.D., Senior Associate Dean for Education ?and Global Initiatives, Josiah Macy, Jr., Professor of Health Professions Education and Professor of Internal Medicine.
Faculty interested in exploring MOOCs are encouraged to contact Academic Innovation to discuss ideas: ai.umich.edu/faculty/
To learn more about faculty-driven innovations within and in addition to those in the health sciences, please visit: ai.umich.edu/portfolio/