Book excerpt: Essential Skills for a Medical Teacher is a new book that will serve as a perfect introduction for new teachers to the exciting opportunities facing them, whether they are working in undergraduate, postgraduate or continuing education. It will also be of considerable use to more experienced teachers to review and assess their own practice and gain a new perspective on how best to facilitate their students' or trainees' learning. The contents are based on the authors’ extensive experience of what works in medical education, whether in teaching and curriculum planning or in the organisation of faculty development courses in medical education at basic and advanced levels. About the authors Ronald M Harden is General Secretary for the Association of Medical Education in Europe, Editor of Medical Teacher, former Professor of Medical Education, Director of the Centre for Medical Education and Teaching Dean at the University of Dundee, UK and Professor of Medical Education at Al-Imam University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He is internationally recognised for his commitment to developing new approaches to medical education, curriculum planning and to teaching and learning. His contributions to excellence in medical education have attracted numerous awards. Jennifer M Laidlaw is Former Assistant Director of the Education Development Unit of the Scottish Council for Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education and the University of Dundee, UK. She has planned, organised and lead courses on medical education both in Dundee and overseas. She has acted as a medical education consultant for the World Health Organisation, the British Council, medical schools and colleges. The text provides hints drawn from practical experience to help teachers create powerful learning opportunities for their students, providing readable guidelines and introducing new techniques that potentially could be adopted for use in any teaching programme. Throughout the book introduces some key basic principles that underpin the practical advice that is given and which will help to inform teaching practice. This book will assist readers to reflect on and analyse with colleagues the different ways that their work as a teacher or trainer can be approached and how their student or trainee's learning can be made more effective.