The importance of educational theories for facilitating learning when using technology in medical education.

Background: There is an increasing use of technology for teaching and learning in medical education but often the use of educational theory to inform the design is not made explicit. The educational theories, both normative and descriptive, used by medical educators determine how the technology is intended to facilitate learning and may explain why some interventions with technology may be less effective compared with others.

Aims: The aim of this study is to highlight the importance of medical educators making explicit the educational theories that inform their design of interventions using technology.