Medical educators, supervisors and registrars throughout Australia grapple with issues around teaching and learning. How do I cover the enormous curriculum of general practice in my teaching sessions? How do I know that I am learning enough of everything? Am I good enough yet to pass my exams?

Finding the answer to these and other big questions is the primary aim of Research Week. Co-convenor and senior medical advisor with GPET, Dr Louise Stone, explains that Research Week was designed to meet the needs of those 'brave enough to tackle the messy content of general practice with the messy processes of educational research'.

"It is designed to be accessible with all the live sessions online. And it's free, and pitched at the right level for the novice researcher. We cover the research basics at 9am each morning, so participants can understand the language and the methods of research with other novice researchers."

Dr Stone said Research week includes sessions for on-the-ground supervisors and educators on tackling the tricky subject of communicating evidence to patients and finding that evidence quickly in practice.

"We have sessions for registrars who are considering an academic term, and educators who want to support them. And we tackle the vexed question of evaluation: what is evaluation and what is educational research?"

"We've set up the first educational research network for GP vocational training – nicknamed ERNIE – so we can meet between annual Research Weeks to share ideas and workshop practical problems in our individual contexts.

Research week is meant to be a conversation: using online learning to break down the tyranny of distance and establish networks nationally. With the technical support of ACRRM, Research Week is building research knowledge and skills across the GPET program.

Join the conversation at www.researchweek.com.au.