Renal List serve- what it taught us as educators?

As a call for the workforce committee at ASN, a renal educators list serve was started. A survey was conducted via the list serve to the pre clinical kidney physiology and pathophysiology courses at US medical schools re methods of teaching, content and resources and in addition also how valuable the "educator" felt re their teaching versus their publications in terms of their medical school.
Some interesting findings:
1. Most of these educators were nephrologists compared to physiologists
2. 60% of course directors noted that their lectures were videotaped resulting in decreased pupils showing up to class.
3. Most common resource used: Audience response system, followed by others such as flash animations, virtual microscopy and simulation centers and others
4. NONE used social media( hard to believe)
5. Close to 70% received no full time equivalent for their efforts and 50% received no renumeration.
6. Most common method used was small groups problem based learning.
7. The most common textbook preferred by educators was Rennke and Denker's Renal Pathophysiology.
8. Harrison's came on the bottom of the list ( no kidding).
9. Most students found Water homeostasis, acid base disorders and glomerular diseases topics most difficult.
10. The renal list serve for educators is serving as a major communication tool to enhance tools and share tools with each other to improve the medical school experience.

Check out the full article at CJASN 

This is valuable information but what will be even more important will be getting more feedback from students as to what they find to be the most effective teaching methods for renal pathophysiology. No course director used social media to facilitate learning is an interesting finding in medical student education. While social media has risen in post graduate education in nephrology, there is still room for change in undergraduate medical education.