A tricentric medical student perspective on open book examinations

Limaye, Neil; Rao, Chirag Bussa; Wallace, William J.

doi:10.1080/0142159x.2020.1800614

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 2 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, within our interviews students did report some drawbacks with OBEs such as the lack of motivation to revise for OBEs due to reliance on notes, leading to insufficient knowledge. Limaye et al [ 28 ] and Sarkar et al [ 20 ] also reported similar observations with the latter stating that students felt like they “copied from the book rather than thinking” during OBEs. Interestingly, some of the interviewees felt that questions in their online OBEs were harder and were phrased in a way that it made their notes less helpful than they would have hoped for.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 56%

“…A wide range of personal circumstances affecting student preparation was described both in our interviews and previous literature [ 8 , 26 – 28 ]. Some students described a positive impact on their academic performance due to a comfortable home environment during the revision and assessment taking period, and some students with physical disabilities found online assessments more accessible [ 32 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…These included the perceived authenticity of OBEs, student anxieties around CBEs and issues about security and invigilation. More recently, Sam et al [ 25 ] also demonstrated that students appreciate assessments being representative of clinical practice, shown by their approval of clinical prioritisation questions, and that they see OBEs as more authentic to clinical practice where information can be looked up [ 26 – 28 ]. In line with this, several students in our study suggested OBEs taught them skills applicable to real-life situations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Medical students’ perception of changes in assessments implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background COVID-19 posed many challenges to medical education in the United Kingdom (UK). This includes implementing assessments during 4 months of national lockdowns within a 2-year period, where in-person education was prohibited. This study aimed to identify medical school assessment formats emerging during COVID-19 restrictions, investigate medical students’ perspectives on these and identify influencing factors. Methods The study consisted of two phases: a questionnaire asking medical students about assessment changes they experienced, satisfaction with these changes and preference regarding different assessments that emerged. The second phase involved semi-structured interviews with medical students across the UK to provide a deeper contextualized understanding of the complex factors influencing their perspectives. Results In the questionnaire responses, open-book assessments had the highest satisfaction, and were the preferred option indicated. Furthermore, in the case of assessment cancellation, an increase in weighting of future assessments was preferred over increase in weighting of past assessments. Students were also satisfied with formative or pass-fail assessments. Interview analyses indicate that although cancellation or replacement of summative assessments with formative assessments reduced heightened anxiety from additional COVID-19 stressors, students worried about possible future knowledge gaps resulting from reduced motivation for assessment-related study. Students’ satisfaction level was also affected by timeliness of communication from universities regarding changes, and student involvement in the decision-making processes. Perceived fairness and standardisation of test-taking conditions were ranked as the most important factors influencing student satisfaction, followed closely by familiarity with the format. In contrast, technical issues, lack of transparency about changes, perceived unfairness around invigilation, and uncertainty around changes in assessment format and weighting contributed to dissatisfaction. Conclusions Online open-book assessments were seen as the most ideal amongst all participants, and students who experienced these were the most satisfied with their assessment change. They were perceived as most fair and authentic compared to real-life medical training. We seek to inform educators about student perceptions of successful assessment strategies under COVID-19 restrictions and provide evidence to allow debate on ongoing assessment reform and innovation. While this work looks specifically at assessment changes during COVID-19, understanding factors affecting student perception of assessment is applicable to examinations beyond COVID-19.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 56%