AAN Education Research Grant

The AAN Education Research Grant program offers financial support to promote educational research in neurology, granting two to four awards of $5,000 to $10,000 based on the proposal and merits of the project. The goals for the grant are to help improve the neurologic education of AAN members, including neurology residents and fellows, medical students, and non-neurologists, as well as promote career development of neurologic educators.

Application Deadlines

The timeline for proposed grant projects to be executed is from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2011.

The deadline to submit a proposal for the 2011 Education Research Grant is Friday, September 3, 2010 at 6:00 pm CST. Applicants will be notified in late October or early November.

2009 Grant Recipients

Charlene E. Gamaldo, MD
"Evaluating the Impact of an On-Line Mini Sleep Course on Neurology and Medicine Trainees—Sleep Medicine Clinical Practices and Knowledge"

Research Abstract:
Sleep disorders affect approximately 40 million Americans annually. A solid foundation in sleep medicine is fundamental to delivering optimal care as demonstrated by the American Academy of Neurology's (AAN) sleep core residency curriculum (1). Moreover, as of 2007, Sleep Medicine as a subspecialty was recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS). ABMS now grants board certification to qualified candidates from multiple specialties (neurology, pulmonary/critical care, internal medicine, psychiatry, ENT, family medicine) which symbolizes the fact that Sleep Medicine truly embodies a multidisciplinary field. As representative of an interdisciplinary field, sleep medicine academicians are in the unique situation to provide practical didactic instruction and exposure to a number of different specialty trainees. Providing a solid foundation of sleep knowledge is
especially crucial for our future health care providers because individuals with neurological conditions appear to be especially vulnerable to co-morbid sleep complaints, and sleep disorders often result in negative neurological sequalae. In this proposal we have devised a self-paced sleep didactic program that utilizes the on-line educational resources available at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine to deliver sleep education to neurology and internal medicine trainees. We hypothesize that this proposed program will significantly improve trainees? sleep medicine knowledge and subsequent patient care.
In order to support our hypothesis we will evaluate the immediate efficacy of our program by tracking patient care and referral patterns. Thus, this program can serve as a groundbreaking model for delivering formal didactic training to other departments within and outside our institution.

Douglas P. Larsen, MD
"Do Deep Learning Techniques Combined with Repeated Testing Prevent Long-Term Forgetting? Investigation of a Novel Combination of Cognitive and Educational Psychology Concepts in Neurological Education"

Abstract:
Background: Studies of reported testing have shown retention of information compared to repeated study. However, learners still experience significant forgetting. The concept of deep learning may provide a useful modification of repeated testing that will fully optimize long-term retention:
Objectives: We will evaluate whether repeated testing combined with deep learning techniques (defined as student-generated, explicit explanations of the significance and application of information) produces superior retention compared to other learning activities as described.
Methods: Our study will compare retention over a six-month interval for four different topics in clinical neurology. First-year medical student volunteers will participate in teaching sessions covering the topics followed by four weekly testing/study sessions. During these sessions, students will be randomized to participate in one of four learning activities for each of the four topics: take a test over the topic, take a test over the topic with deep learning techniques, study a review sheet of the topic, and study a review sheet over the topic with deep learning techniques. Six months after the initial teaching session students will participate in a final application test covering the four topics. Comparisons will be made as to which learning activities produced the best retention and application of the material.
Anticipated Results: We believe that students will be able to retain and apply significantly more information through repeated testing with deep learning techniques than with other learning activities in our study.
Significance: Our study may give educators a powerful, evidence-based tool to bridge initial learning and final application.

2008 Grant Recipients:

David E. Newman-Toker, MD, PhD
"The Complaint-Focused Neurologic History & Physical: "20 Questions" Diagnostic Gaming to Build Diagnostic Reasoning Skills—Software Platform Development & Pilot Testing in Clerkship Students"

2007 Grant Recipients:

2006 Grant Recipients: