Scholarship and Research in Schools of Dentistry: Dilemmas and Opportunities

Many medical schools have developed parallel research and clinician-educator tracks to address the changing roles of clinical faculty and to demonstrate appreciation of the importance of teaching and education-related activities. Broaden definitions of scholarship have emerged to recognize legitimate scholarship in addition to research. Scholarship is demonstrated when knowledge is advanced or transformed (not just discovered) by the application of one's intellect in an informed, disciplined and creative manner. The products of any form of scholarship must be reviewed by peers for quality and disseminated into the public domain. As such, products could include (in addition to peer-reviewed publications and presentations), instructional materials, evaluation tools, program development, and teaching itself if predetermined criteria are met. The objective for this symposium is to provocatively discuss the need for and implication of expanding the definition of scholarship in schools of dentistry. The speakers will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of applying the concept of scholarship in schools of dentistry. This symposium is sponsored by the Delta Dental Plans Association and Washington Dental Service.