title: Undergraduate otolaryngology education at the University of Toronto: a review using a curriculum mapping system.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of Canadian medical school curricula is to provide educational experiences that satisfy the specific objectives set out by the Medical Council of Canada. However, for specialties such as otolaryngology, there is considerable variability in student exposure to didactic and clinical teaching across Canadian medical schools, making it unclear whether students receive sufficient teaching of core otolaryngology content and clinical skills. The goal of this review was to assess the exposure to otolaryngology instruction in the undergraduate medical curriculum at the University of Toronto.
  
  
  METHODS
  Otolaryngology objectives were derived from objectives created by the Medical Council of Canada and the University of Toronto. The University of Toronto's recently developed Curriculum Mapping System (CMap) was used to perform a keyword search of otolaryngology objectives to establish when and to what extent essential topics were being taught.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All (10 of 10) major topics and skills identified were covered in the undergraduate medical curriculum. Although no major gaps were identified, an uneven distribution of teaching time exists. The majority (> 90%) of otolaryngology education occurs during year 1 of clerkship. The amount of preclerkship education was extremely limited.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Essential otolaryngology topics and skills are taught within the University of Toronto curriculum. The CMap was an effective tool to assess the otolaryngology curriculum and was able to identify gaps in otolaryngology education during the preclerkship years of medical school. As a result, modifications to the undergraduate curriculum have been implemented to provide additional teaching during the preclerkship years.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON. d.oyewumi@utoronto.ca
authors.forename: Modupe
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oyewumi
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Isaac
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schreiber
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Campisi
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum / Q000592:standards*; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004522:Educational Status; D006801:Humans; D009864:Ontario; D010036:Otolaryngology / Q000193:education*; D012577:Schools, Medical