Development of an assessment strategy in preclinical fixed prosthodontics course using virtual assessment software-Part 2

Dental students' and faculty perception of online exams with e-invigilation in Cyprus

INTRODUCTION

During the recent pandemic, e-learning and e-assessment methods have been implemented worldwide, providing opportunities for further implementation in the dental curriculum. This study aims to research the dental students' and dental faculty's perceptions of online exams with e-invigilation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Online questionnaires were developed and delivered, after three semesters of online exams, to all students and faculty. Descriptive statistics were performed, and answers were grouped into Principal Components (PC) using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Statistical significance was set at p < .05.

RESULTS

Two-hundred and sixty dental students (83.7%) and 24 dental faculty members (63.1%) answered the online questionnaires. PCA of students' responses revealed 4 PC, 'University support to students', 'Comparison between online and face-to-face exams', 'Preparation for the online exams' and 'Attitudes towards the technology used for the online exams'. PCA of faculty responses revealed 5 PC: 'Comparison between online and face-to-face exams', 'University support to faculty', 'Faculty attitudes towards the exam procedures', 'Human factors associated with the exam procedures' and 'Exam invigilation'. The overall satisfaction was high for both staff and students (higher for students and female staff). Students with previous experience in online exams scored more positively than first-year students. University support, process-related stress and e-invigilation were highlighted.

CONCLUSIONS

The overall satisfaction with the e-exams was high, despite the technical problems, time-consuming processes and related stress. University support (training, IT support and resources) and mock exams emerged as important elements of online exams, as was the e-invigilation, which students perceived as efficient and non-intrusive.

Rethinking Assessment Concepts in Dental Education

Introduction

Dental education involves teaching and assessing the acquisition of verifiable domains that require superior psychomotor, communication, and cognitive skills. Evolving technologies and methods of assessment could enhance student's learning environment and improve tutor assessment experience. The aim of this study was to review the current body of research and evaluate the effectiveness of various methods of assessments in improving learning and performance in preclinical and clinical dental practice.

Materials and Methods

A search strategy was implemented using electronic search in major databases. The following key terms, clinical skills, preclinical, dental students, and assessment, were included in the search. Two reviewers independently screened all the articles retrieved following very specific inclusion criteria.

Results

The initial search generated 5371 articles and 24 articles were selected for review and data extraction. Cohen's kappa coefficient was used to measure interrater agreement and a score of 94.7% was obtained.

Conclusion

Preclinical assessment is an effective tool for promoting skills transfer to clinical phase. Early psychomotor skills assessment is valuable. It allows early intervention in the learning process and assists in effective utilization of learning resources. Technology-enhanced assessment systems allow better patient simulation, enhance learning and self-assessment experiences, and improve performance evaluation. However, these systems serve as an adjunct to conventional assessment methods. Further research should aim at calibrating and integrating these systems to optimize students learning and performance.

Comparison of Effectiveness of Two Teaching Methods on Acquisition of Skills in Preclinical Fixed Prosthodontics

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of dental faculty-student interactions, virtual assessment software, and associated rubrics on student performance by assessing tooth preparations generated during the students' final practical exam. The study, conducted in 2017 and 2018, compared teeth prepared for preclinical fixed prosthodontics competency exams by two subsequent classes of second-year dental students trained using different methods. Class A was trained for nine months prior to the exam using feedback via student-faculty interactions and conventional rubrics. Class B was trained for five and half months prior to the exam via contemporary rubrics that incorporated feedback from both faculty and virtual assessment software. Two blinded, independent, and calibrated faculty members randomly evaluated the tooth preparations and graded them as excellent, standard, or standard not met for occlusal reduction, axial/lingual reduction, contour/long axis/axial wall height, finish line location, finish line quality, and finish of the preparation. The interrater agreement was slight to fair (0.01 < Kappa < 0.4) for evaluation of preparations. The teaching method did not have a significant impact (p>0.05) on student performance for the assessed criteria. These results suggest that, with the use of virtual assessment software, a course director may be able to shorten a course and obtain the same results as a nine-month course.