| This study focuses on teachers' experiences at Harvard Medical School (HMS). After discussing the characteristics of traditional medical education, I describe the implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and focus on how HMS has adapted PBL to integrate biomedical knowledge with the social sciences in the Patient-Doctor Relationship 1 Course (PD1), which requires a redefinition of teachers' roles.;I observed four tutorial groups, interviewed twelve tutors, and collected data about PD1 institutional context. I then looked for patterns and themes, drawing on categories from feminist theory such as authority, differences, feelings, and emotions, and identified ideas that illustrate the tacit knowledge that informs tutors' behavior.;Most tutors have experienced teacher-centered education as students. In PD1 they play multiple roles and engage in closer relationships with students and co-tutors, which demand a redistribution of authority among group members. The ability to play those multiple roles, such as facilitating group work, providing feedback, and supporting students' development into doctors, increases with time. There is a parallel between tutors' acquiring knowledge and skills to interact with tutorial group members, and students learning to interact with patients and colleagues. Tutors did not observe that gender was important in shaping their teaching styles in PD1, but provided several accounts of the impact of one's gender in medical education and medical practice.;This is a qualitative case study focusing on how teachers perceive and experience the role of PD “tutors.” I introduce insights from the medical education and feminist pedagogy literatures that are relevant to PBL/PD1. |
