Aims and Scope

Teaching and Learning in Medicine (TLM) is an international forum for scholarly, state-of-the-art research on the purposes and processes of teaching and learning in the education of medical professionals. Its international scope acknowledges the common challenge faced by all medical teachers—fostering the acquisition and maintenance of usable knowledge and skills in a broad, highly complex, and constantly changing clinical science—and that a common base of theory and research will contribute to meeting that challenge. Its articles address practical issues in the conduct of medical education, as well as issues more basic to medical education, and provide analysis and empirical research needed to facilitate educational decision making by administrators, teachers, and learners. Its scope includes all levels of medical education, from premedical to postgraduate and continuing medical education. TLM publishes manuscripts in the following categories:

Perspectives/Editorials. These scholarly statements identify significant issues in medical education and are particularly important for communicating perspectives of the priorities for research on teaching and learning in medicine. Analyses/Reviews of Literature. Scholarly analyses and reviews of the literature serve essential functions, such as unifying lines of investigation, shaping research needs, and elucidating paradigm differences.

Applied Research. The major portion of TLM is devoted to research on the purposes and process of teaching and learning in medicine—research critical to the day-to-day conduct of the medical education enterprise. The research selected is methodologically sound, practical, interpretable, and useful to the teaching of medicine.

Research Basic to Medical Education. The development of any science depends on the interplay between applied research and research of a more basic nature; there is a fundamental complementary relation between the two. This category includes reports of such basic research.

Research Methodology. Some research serves the community of researchers more directly than it does that of medical teachers. This section includes reports addressing the science of medical education research rather than the science of medical education. Developments. This section describes innovations and newly developed programs, the purpose being to permit researchers a ready communication forum for their curriculum developments in progress, but not yet fully researched. Special Articles. This category includes articles that do not fit well in other categories or those to which the editors wish to draw special attention.

Book Reviews. Reviews of new books in medical education serve to draw the attention of the TLM readership to books of particular relevance. Reviews of conferences, workshops, or other events also appear here.

Announcements. Brief news items of general interest to medical educators are listed in this section.

Manuscript and Disk Submission

All parts of the manuscript should be typewritten, double-spaced, with margins of at least one inch on all sides. Indent all paragraphs. Number manuscript pages consecutively throughout the paper. Authors should also supply a shortened version of the title suitable for the running head, not exceeding 50 character spaces. Include an abstract with a maximum of 150 words, and with no references or abbreviations, using the following formats: for Perspectives, Editorials, Analyses, and Literature Reviews include Background, Summary, and Conclusions; for Applied Research and Methodology include Background, Purposes, Methods, Results, and Conclusions; for Developments include Background, Description, Evaluation, and Conclusions; for Special Articles include

Purpose, Summary, and Conclusions.

Identify references cited within the text by superscripted numerals in the order in which they appear. Use asterisks for footnotes within the text.

Tables and figures (illustrations) should not be embedded in the text, but should be included as separate sheets or files. A short descriptive title should appear above each table with a clear legend and any footnotes suitably identified below. All units must be included. Figures should be completely labeled, taking into account necessary size reduction. Captions should be typed, double-spaced, on a separate sheet. All original figures should be clearly marked in pencil on the reverse side with the number, author's name, and top edge indicated.

Proofs and Reprints

Page proofs are sent to the designated author using Taylor & Francis' Central Article Tracking System (CATS). They must be carefully checked and returned within 48 hours of receipt. Reprints of individual articles are available for order at the time authors review page proofs. A discount on reprints is available to authors who order before print publication.