Ophthalmic Educators

The ICO is committed to improving ophthalmic education by "teaching the teachers" – offering conferences, courses, curricula and online resources to anyone involved in ophthalmic education.

International Curricula: To help enhance the quality of ophthalmic education worldwide, the ICO has defined curricula for training ophthalmology residents, medical students and allied eye care providers. The ICO is currently updating and expanding the residency curriculum and is also working with international subspecialty societies to define curricula for training ophthalmic subspecialists.

ICO curricula may be found in the Resources section of the ICO Web site at: www.icoph.org/resources.html.

ICO Curricula:

For residents, allied providers and medical students (2006)
For ophthalmic assistants (2009) and refractionists (2011)
New curriculum for residents (2011)
For subspecialty training (2012-2013) (in development)

Courses for Directors of Residency Program Directors: The Directors Courses are held each year in cities around the world, coordinated through the national ophthalmologic society. The ICO has offered 19 courses since 2004. Learn more: www.icoph.org/residency.html

Conferences for Ophthalmic Educators: The Conferences, which are co-sponsored by the ICO and supranational and national societies, serve to help teachers of residents, subspecialists, medical students, and allied eye care personnel improve their teaching effectiveness. View presentations from past Conferences for Ophthalmic Educators.

Upcoming Conferences:

World Ophthalmic Education Colloquium (WOEC): The ICO Education Committee presents symposia at each World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC), designed to attract attendees of different interests and spotlighting various aspects of ophthalmic education.

The WOEC is open to all members of the ophthalmic community with the goal of helping ophthalmic educators and others enhance the training and continuing education of ophthalmologists and other eye care personnel.

OSCAR and other Assessment Tools: The ICO-Ophthalmology Surgical Competency Assessment Rubric (OSCAR) is a standardized, internationally-valid tool to teach and assess an ophthalmologist’s competence in performing various types of eye surgery. Selected ICO-OSCAR tools are available for download in English, Spanish, and Chinese.

Center for Ophthalmic Educators (educators.icoph.org): Launched in January 2012, the ICO Center for Ophthalmic Educators at educators.icoph.org is focused on helping educators enhance their teaching skills with curricula, tips and tools, ways to collaborate, and more. The Center offers a broad array of educational tools and resources for those who train residents, subspecialty fellows, allied eye professionals, and medical students, and who organize continuing professional development programs.

Online Courses and Tools for Teachers: Organized by the ICO, these courses cover the online application of adult learning principles, how to plan and build courses, how to select and use the best software tools, and how to put these new skills and information into practice. Upcoming courses are announced in the Center.

Ophthalmic Educators Letter: The Center's monthly newsletter, Ophthalmic Educators Letter includes news and announcements about recently added and updated resources in the Center.

Sign up here: www.icoph.org/ophthalmic-educators-signup.html
You may also sign up by editing your ICO Account profile. After logging into your ICO account, go to your profile and check the box for the Opthalmic Educators Letter.
View current and past issues of the Ophthalmic Educators Letter.

ICO and Center Website Tools and Resources:

News: Find out what is happening around the world in Ophthalmic Education on the ICO website or in the Center. Use our online form to submit a news item to the ICO website.
Events: Upcoming educational events are listed in the Center and on the ICO website. Use our online form to submit an event to the ICO website.

Resources: Tools, curricula and information to help you teach are available on the ICO website and in the Center.
- Do you have other resources to share? Send an email to educators@icoph.org or visit the Center to learn more. You may also use our online form to submit a resource to the ICO.

Connections: Interest groups for educators to share information and ideas.

Join the ICO’s free online community. We will contact you about receiving updates, news and information.

Future Connections: We are developing interest groups on residency, subspecialty, medical student education, allied health, continuing medical education, and new technology for teaching and learning. Explore ways to connect in the Center or check the Connections page for updates.