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Moving Beyond the Near-Peer Teaching Model with the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Teaching Assistant Program

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Abstract

Medical students will become educators teaching peers, healthcare students, patients, and families. At Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, the “Teaching Assistants in Medical Education” program provides fourth-year medical students with the skills and experiences needed to prepare them as medical educators. The program goes beyond the near peer teaching model to support student development in curricular design, assessment, and communication skills through a Clinical Skills or Anatomy track. Investment in the development of medical students as future educators will yield immediate and long-term rewards.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge and show appreciation for the 4th-year medical students who have participated in the Teaching Assistants in Medical Education program at NJMS. They have made it a successful program that has improved the educational experience for pre-clerkship students.

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No funding was obtained for this study.

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Contributions

S.C. initially helped create the Teaching Assistants in Medical Education program. S.C. and C.T serve as co-directors for the Clinical Skills Track and J.G. and G.H. serve as co-directors for the Anatomy Track. J.G. and S.C. primarily wrote the original draft, with G.H. and C.T. reviewing, editing, and adding additional contributions. All authors have read and approved the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sophia Chen.

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Grachan, J.J., Holan, G., Traba, C. et al. Moving Beyond the Near-Peer Teaching Model with the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Teaching Assistant Program. Med.Sci.Educ. 34, 455–461 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-024-01988-z

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