Medical Curriculum Change at Queen's-affiliated Medical Colleges: 1881 – 1910

This study explores the curriculum at Queen’s-affiliated medical colleges, specifically The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Kingston, the Kingston Women’s Medical College, and Queen’s Medical College, from 1881 to 1910, using the textbooks prescribed by these institutions as primary sources. The central question encompasses what factors primarily motivated the curriculum at Queen’s-affiliated medical colleges to change. Within the historiographical scholarship on Queen’s College, this question has not yet been addressed and, to my knowledge, this is the first medical education history to specifically address textbooks as part of a medical school curriculum. During this period, these institutions experienced reorganizational shifts, such as the reunification of Queen’s Medical College with The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Kingston, as well as the introduction and subsequent exclusion of female students. Within this context, this study examines how the forces of scientific innovation and co-education impacted the curriculum during the period under study, as measured by textbook change, specifically in the courses of obstetrics and gynaecology, the theory and practice of medicine, and surgery. To what degree was curriculum in these courses responsive to scientific inventions and discoveries, changing therapeutic practices, and possible gender biases? From 1881 to 1910, innovations such as x-ray and anaesthesia became commonplace within medical practice. Some technologies gained acceptance in the curriculum, while others fell out of favour. This study tracks these scientific discoveries through the textbooks used at Queen’s-affiliated medical colleges in order to demonstrate how the evolving nature of medicine was represented in the curriculum. To address how gender influenced the curriculum, textbooks from the Kingston Women’s Medical College and The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Kingston, were compared. For two out of the three examined courses, it was found that sections of textbooks discussing various topics at the Kingston Women’s Medical College contained significantly more detail than their corresponding sections within The Royal College’s textbooks. It was speculated that the instructors preferred to teach their female students through textbooks, rather than lectures.

Implementing the Physical Literacy Component of the 2015 Ontario Health and Physical Education Curriculum: Is the Stage Set?

Introduction: Current physical activity levels among children and youth are alarmingly low; a mere 7% of children and youth are meeting the Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines (Colley et al., 2011), which means that the vast majority of this population is at risk of developing major health problems in adulthood (Janssen & Leblanc, 2010). These high inactivity rates may be related to suboptimal experiences in sport and physical activity stemming from a lack of competence and confidence (Lubans, Morgan, Cliff, Barnett, & Okely, 2010). Developing a foundation of physical literacy can encourage and maintain lifelong physical activity, yet this does not always occur naturally as a part of human growth (Hardman, 2011). An ideal setting to foster the growth and development of physical literacy is physical education class. Physical education class can offer all children and youth an equal opportunity to learn and practice the skills needed to be active for life (Hardman, 2011). Elementary school teachers are responsible for delivering the physical education curriculum, and it is important to understand their will and capacity as the implementing agents of physical literacy development curriculum (McLaughlin, 1987). Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the physical literacy component of the 2015 Ontario Health and Physical Education curriculum policy through the eyes of key informants, and to explore the resources available for the implementation of this new policy. Methods: Qualitative interviews were conducted with seven key informants of the curriculum policy development, including two teachers. In tandem with the interviews, a resource inventory and curriculum review were conducted to assess the content and availability of physical literacy resources. All data were analyzed through the lens of Hogwood and Gunn’s (1984) 10 preconditions for policy implementation. Results: Participants discussed how implementation is affected by: accountability, external capacity, internal capacity, awareness and understanding of physical literacy, implementation expertise, and policy climate. Discussion: Participants voiced similar opinions on most issues, and the overall lack of attention given to physical education programs in schools will continue to be a major dilemma when trying to combat such high physical inactivity levels.