An Environmental Scan on the Status of Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Skills in Colleges/Schools of Pharmacy: Report of the 2009–2010 Academic Affairs Standing Committee

According to the Bylaws of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), the Academic Affairs Committee shall consider the intellectual, social, and personal aspects of pharmaceutical education. It is expected to identify practices, procedures, and guidelines that will aid faculties in developing students to their maximum potential. It will also be concerned with curriculum analysis, development, and evaluation beginning with the pre-professional level and extending through professional and graduate education. The Committee shall seek to identify issues and problems affecting the administrative and financial aspects of member institutions. The Academic Affairs Committee shall extend its attention beyond intra-institutional matters of colleges of pharmacy to include interdisciplinary concerns with the communities of higher education and especially with those elements concerned with health education. Consistent with a theme of exploring the way in which AACP might foster organizational improvement and success among its institutional members, President Jeffrey Baldwin charged the 2009-10 AACP Academic Affairs Standing Committee to consider the outcomes of the 2009 AACP Curricular Change Summit and the recommendations contained in the 5 background white papers. (1-5) The Committee was charged to synthesize recommendations for AACP and its member institutions with regard to curricular issues that need further development, study or implementation. The Committee reviewed and discussed some of the key outcomes from the AACP Curricular Change Summit. Summit participants were asked to identify the 1 or 2 key outcomes that each graduate should possess upon graduation. The Summit participants concluded that the most essential components were critical thinking and problem solving skills. Another of the major findings from the September 2009 AACP Curricular Change Summit was that the generation of students currently entering undergraduate education and trickling into colleges/ schools of pharmacy learn differently from previous student cohorts. Summit participants suggested that it is not as much what is being taught that is the issue with this generation of learners, but rather the manner in which it is taught; specifically the way critical thinking and problem solving skills are learned. The Changing Learner The ability to educate students is an increasingly complicated task that is impacted by a number of factors including the changing learner. It has become apparent that today's students communicate and may even learn in ways unlike previous generations. (6) These students are more comfortable with technology, having used computers, played videogames, and utilized other interactive technologies throughout most of their lives. They are more adept than previous generations at multi-tasking with media and technology; they listen to music, talk or text and use the computer simultaneously. (7) Some categorize these students as the Net generation, while others refer to them as the Millennial generation. (8) This group, typically born between 1982 and 1991, is the first generation to be raised with Internet availability. (8) Prensky refers to these learners as digital natives, as they are "native speakers" of the digital language of computers and the Internet. (7) Computers, the Internet, online resources, and the desire for instantaneous access are fundamental to these students' lives. (8) They are constantly connected and in communication with others through the use of email, social network sites, instant messages (IM), and text messages. (9) Socialization is very important to this new generation of learners. They are especially attracted to activities that include interaction with their peer group. (6) They like to learn and work in teams, however, their interaction need not be face-to-face. For them, technologies such as email, blogs, and online social networking sites can be just as effective as face-to-face interaction. …