When submitting research papers to international academic journals, we consider the aims and scope of the journals, readership, acceptance rate, impact factors, etc. to select which journal is most suitable for our studies. In this paper, the editorial board of Medical Education Japan analyzed articles published in international journals between 2009 and 2018 by first authors belonging to institutions in Japan. Pertaining to the number of articles, BMC Medical Education ranked first with forty-one articles (all were original research papers) and Medical Teacher ranked second with 22 (16 original research papers). There were 8 and 7 articles published by first authors from Japan in Academic Medicine and Medical Education, respectively. There are few articles published from Japan in Advances in Health Science Education and Teaching and Learning in Medicine. Some journals, like Advances in Physiology Education and Journal of Surgical Education, focus on specific fields of medicine. We will show characteristics of these major journals (e.g. area of interest, unique article categories, key points for submission, etc.). We hope that readers utilize this information for article submission.

In conjunction with Kegan's Constructive Developmental Theory, Kalet et al. defined the developmental stages of a physician's Professional Identity Formation (PIF). Kalet et al. also developed the Professional Identity Essay (PIE) as a tool to assess the developmental stages of PIF. This paper introduces an educational strategy to enhance the effectiveness of learning with the faculty by using the PIE in community-based clinical clerkship at Jichi Medical University. Students create self-images of the present and future in relation to the professionalism inherent in their mind. The goal is to motivate medical students to reflect sincerely on themselves based on their PIE descriptions and to focus closely on the learning behaviors of the faculty that has something in common with their future images. The reflection, learning behavior, and motivation are the basic elements of self-regulated learning (SRL) proposed by Zimmerman. This educational strategy is a practical application of the PIF-SRL theory proposed by the author.

As outcome-based education has taken hold worldwide, many new findings on learner assessment have emerged. In addition, with the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapid spread of generative artificial intelligence, the situation surrounding learner assessment is entering a new phase. Now is the time to review the historical transition of modern learner assessment in the world and in Japan, to clarify our inherent value criteria for learner assessment, and to discuss the future prospects for learner assessment. This paper will explain the key issues related to learner assessment in the context of past and present trends.

When introducing the computer-based test (CBT) to the National Medical Licensing Examination, it is desirable to introduce question items with video and audio to take advantage of the characteristics of computers and to fill in the gaps between the audiovisual information presented in the exam and in clinical practice. 　To this end, it is necessary to collect appropriate video and audio materials and to establish the know-how and human resource development for creating items that make use of these materials.　The authors have been engaged in the development of video/audio-assisted CBT for 12 years. In the Kawakita Group of the Health Labour Sciences Research Grant projects, video/audio-assisted question items were given in the CBT trials for the National Medical Licensing Examination. Also, a manual and workshops for video/audio-assisted CBT have been prepared. Based on these experiences, this paper discusses the merits and challenges of CBT for the National Medical Licensing Exam.

In recent years, the Committee for the Improvement of the National Medical Licensing Examination has been discussing the possibility of replacing the National Medical Licensing Examination with CBT. The reasons for this include the diversification of the question format using multimedia and other methods and the need to respond to disasters and pandemics. Against this background, the authors are conducting research on CBT implementation for the National Medical Practitioners Examination. In FY2021, we conducted a CBT trial for the National Medical Licensing Examination using an open-source system. The trial was conducted at ten universities across the country, and most examinees were able to take the exam without any major problems. The future implementation of the CBT format for the national medical examinations will simplify the examination preparation system, develop a multiple examination system in preparation for contingencies, and evaluate examinees' abilities through more diverse question formats.

The Medical Education Specialist Certified Coursework, which has been officially in operation since 2014, has produced 181 specialists to date. In response to the globalization of medical education, the program has established a system to foster specialists who can work to improve education in accordance with international standards at each educational institution. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 made it impossible to hold face-to-face lessons, forcing the organizers to reform the course. The course resumed in February 2021 as a full online course. Moodle was used as the learning platform, and lectures and group work were conducted via Zoom. There were no major connection problems, and the results of the post-course questionnaire showed a high level of satisfaction and usefulness of the learning. To make this course a good practice for a new era in education, the strengths of both face-to-face and online methods should be incorporated.