1. Amy Lin, MD (alin@uic.edu) & Abbas hyderi, md, mph (ahyder2@uic.edu)
Personalized Learning and Unified Synthesis (PLUS): An activity to facilitate self-directed learning
Amy Lin, MD & Abbas hyderi, md, mph

2. Learning Objectives
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
Describe Personalized Learning and Unified Synthesis (PLUS) as a specific activity that can incorporated into any learning activity to further augment self-directed and lifelong learning skills
Practice applying PLUS by generating self-directed learning worksheets associated with this activity

3. Agenda Introduction and Team Formation - 5 minutes
Individual Readiness Assurance Test (IRAT) - 5 minutes
Team Readiness Assurance Test (TRAT) - 10 minutes
Clarifying Discussion - 10 minutes
Application Exercise Task #1 -  40 minutes
Application Exercise Task # minutes
Lessons Learned/Next Steps - 10 minutes 

4. Introduction & Team Formation
Free resources available: (or can use Headspace app if subscription purchased)  
Breathing Meditation min 31 sec

5. Team formation - Criteria
1. Have you personally been involved in preparing documentation for your medical school's LCME review (if applicable) over the last year with the revised standards?
2. Have you been interviewed by LCME reviewers (if applicable) regarding the elements ED 5-A (old) and/or 6.3 (new)?
3. Do you teach aspects of the critical appraisal/evidence-base medicine curriculum at your institution?

6. Individual Readiness Assurance Test
You have 5 minutes to complete this closed book test

7. Team Readiness Assurance Test
You have 10 minutes to complete this closed book test
Grading points
5 points = right answer on first try
3 points = right answer on second try
1 point = right answer on third try
0 points = right answer on fourth or fifth tries

8. Clarifying Discussion

9. Question 1
What is the common aim of both the old standard ED-5A and the new element 6.3? 
 Active learning 
 Lifelong learning
 Self-directed learning 
 Social learning 
 Problem-based learning

10. Question 2
Which of the following best describes the sequence of steps in a Personalized Learning and Unified Synthesis (PLUS) activity?
Identify learning gap; Search the literature; Analyze selected sources; Synthesize information from source(s)
Search the literature; Identify learning gap; Analyze selected source(s); Synthesize information
Practice questions; identify learning gap; Search the literature; Synthesize information
Review faculty feedback regarding learning gaps

11. Question 3
What is the suggested approach to faculty feedback on information seeking and critical appraisal skills for the PLUS activity?
Give a numerical score from 0-100
Give a grade – A, B, C, D, F
Utilize rubric to provide feedback on each of the steps of the PLUS activity
Provide exemplar answer and have students compare their post to the exemplar

12. Question 4
When a foreground question is selected for the PLUS activity, what approach is suggested for framing the question?
Utilize the question generator filter through PubMed
Kolb's cycle of experiential learning
Moving from generic to specific lines of inquiry
PICO (Patient; Intervention; Comparison; Outcome)

13. Appeals
Sorry, no appeals today. :)

14. Application Exercise
Free resources available: (or can use Headspace app if subscription purchased)  
Breathing Meditation min 31 sec

15. Task #1: PLUS As a team…
Complete the self-directed learning worksheet (40 minutes total)
Identify a question your team still has after the readiness assurance test. Indicate if it is a foreground or background question. IF it is a foreground question, use PICO format, if possible (10 min)
Perform search (up to 10 min)
Analyze information sources, including strengths and weaknesses (up to 10 min)
Synthesize information to answer your question (up to 8 min)
One member writes your answers on the poster paper (2 min)

16. Task #2: Faculty feedback As a team you have up to 30 minutes...
Use the faculty feedback form to rate the self-directed learning worksheet submissions
Select the best submission

17. Lessons Learned / Next Steps
Free resources available: (or can use Headspace app if subscription purchased)  
Breathing Meditation min 31 sec