Deconstructing the ‘ivory tower’: building strategic curricula for health

Within the context of postgraduate education, the majority of curriculum design for allied healthcare practitioners has stemmed from assumptions that learning is a one-dimensional concept with definitive starting and completion points, undertaken by the individual in pursuit of knowledge. This knowledge is perceived as being consumed by the learner and that it requires a formalized process of teaching in order to separate it from the rest of everyday activity and experience. This article charts the strategic development of a new and innovative approach to needs-led educational provision within multidisciplinary health care in higher education through the deconstruction of traditional approaches to teaching and learning. It also presents the case for merging the theoretical underpinnings of situated learning with the concept of problem-based learning, in which knowledge is created rather than consumed within the context of a new and innovative programme that seeks to build capacity in and between professional disciplines across the healthcare arena.