• Matthew Jian Wen Low, Kathleen Swee Min Khoo, Win Sen Kuan, and Shirley Beng Suat Ooi.
• Emergency Medicine Department, National University Hospital, National University Health System, Singapore.
• Singap Med J. 2020 Jan 1; 61 (1): 28-33.

IntroductionDefining the characteristics of a good medical teacher has implications for faculty selection and development. Perceptions of characteristics may differ with cultural context and level of training, as medical students progress from didactic preclinical training based on cognitivist learning theory to more complex integration of theory and practice in specific contexts in clinical training based on constructivist learning theory.MethodsWe modified a validated questionnaire with permission from the original authors at Melaka Manipal Medical College, Melaka, Malaysia. Participants rated 35 characteristics on a 5-point Likert scale. The modified questionnaire was validated in a pilot pool of medical students (n = 69), with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.90, and administered to Year 1-5 medical students (n = 917) at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.ResultsBased on the proportion of favourable Likert scoring, four top desirable characteristics were common across Year 1-5 students: good communication skills (84.4%); sound knowledge of subject (82.7%); enthusiasm (78.4%); and providing effective explanations (74.4%). Approachability (p = 0.005), encouraging participation (p < 0.001) and constructive criticism (p < 0.001) were more important to clinical students (Year 3-5) than preclinical students (Year 1-2).ConclusionThe top four characteristics were consistent across all years of medical students in this study. Characteristics emphasised in the clinical years facilitate active learner participation, consistent with constructivist learning theory.Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association.

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