The goal of all dental schools is to develop competent, knowledgeable dentists who have excellent communication skills and a sense of social responsibility. This paper describes the theoretical reasoning behind the design of an innovative dental curriculum constructed from first principles in the UK. The recognised theories of psychologists, educationalists and sociologists of the twentieth century have informed our educational decisions. In practice, this translates to a blended learning environment with problem-based learning (PBL) case scenarios at its heart. The learning of clinical and communication skills, which begins in year 1, week 1, is absolutely integral to the case scenarios, as are ethics and professionalism. PBL is supported by a comprehensive e-learning platform, plenary lectures, workshops, clinical and life science teaching delivered by core academic staff and guest speakers who are the experts in our 'community of practice' in which the students are the novices. We believe that the whole is best described as 'enquiry-based learning'. © 2008 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
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