Linking Assessment to Curricular Objectives

Charles F. Shuler, D.M.D., Ph.D

About the Speaker

Dr. Shuler is the Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of British Columbia.  Prior to being appointed at UBC he was a faculty member at the University of Southern California for 18 years.  At USC he served as the Director of the University of Southern California Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology holding  an endowed chair position as the George and Mary Lou Boone Professor of Craniofacial Molecular Biology.  He also served as the Director of the Graduate Program in Craniofacial Biology and the Associate Dean for Student and Academic Affairs at the USC School of Dentistry.  Dr. Shuler received his B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin, his D.M.D. from Harvard School of Dental Medicine, his Ph.D. in Pathology from the University of Chicago and his Oral Pathology specialty education at the University of Minnesota and the Royal Dental College Copenhagen Denmark. 

He has served as a member of the Oral Biology and Medicine-2 Study Section of the National Institutes of Health and participated on the editorial boards of several journal including the Journal of Dental Research, Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and the Journal of Periodontology.  Dr. Shuler was the principal investigator of the USC-California Science Project that worked with more than 200 teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District to improve science education in public schools. 

His current research interests include craniofacial development, oral carcinogenesis and gene therapy.  The craniofacial development topics examine the molecular control of palatogenesis and the specific genes that regulate palatal fusion.  Special emphasis on transforming growth factor b3 has shown the critical role of this gene product in palatal fusion.  The research continues to be supported by research grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.  Dr. Shuler has been supported by numerous research grants including Center grants, Program Project grants and Individual Investigator grants.

The Importance of Instructional Objectives in the Assessment Methods and Outcome Based Education

Prof Dr Krassanai Wangsimakul – Thailand

About the Speaker

Synopsis

Before any teaching ,we must decide upon the Goals we intend to reach at the end of the course or programme so that we can select procedures ,content and methods relevant to the Objectives .At the end of the course or programme we can measure or evaluate the student’s performance according to the Objectives or Goals originally selected.
The statement of the Objectives of a training programme must denote measurable attributes observable in the graduate of the programme,or otherwise it is impossible to determine whether or not the programme is meeting the objectives. Tests and Examinations are mileposts along the road of learning to tell the teacher and the student the degree to which both have been successful in their achievement of the course objectives.
Unless Goals are clearly and firmly fixed in the minds of both teacher and learner, tests or examinations are at best misleading; at worse, they are irrelevant, unfair , or useless.
Stating Objectives sharply and clearly is very important for the Outcome Based Education ( OBE).  The OBE is the shift from traditional focus on what the students should be taught ( content)and how much time they should be taught, to a focus on setting universal standards of what students are expected to demonstrate they “ must know ,must be able to do and must be able to feel”
Other associated name /nomenclature for OBE is : Competency-Based Education.

PBL Assessment

W. Keung LEUNG

Synopsis

At the Faculty of Dentistry at The University of Hong Kong, problem-based learning (PBL) has changed our undergraduate dental degree course by transforming its teacher-centred curriculum into a student-centred one that uses ‘real-world’ situations to create collaborative learning opportunities. In practice, this has meant that teaching staff have had to learn to be especially receptive to change in students’, and their own, approaches to education, expectations, attitudes, and values, as well as in the methods of assessing students’ learning outcomes. PBL assessment protocols have to be able to evaluate students’ ability to identify their own learning needs, acquire knowledge effectively and efficiently, critique new information, integrate both old and new knowledge into dental practice, and develop clinical skills. To meet these requirements, our Faculty established a variety of assessment protocols and put in place a robust review system to ensure self-reflection and continuous improvement of our PBL and assessment practices. Furthermore, both staff and students have needed to undergo appropriate prior training so that the validity of our PBL assessment methods can be maintained. This presentation summarizes the experience of our Faculty in designing and implementing its PBL assessment methods over the past decade, and describes how our Faculty has co-evolved with the need to accurately assess learning outcomes expected from dental students.

FROM TRADITIONAL TO COMPETENCY-BASED ASSESSMENT: “TRIBULATIONS AND CHALLENGES”

Associate Professor Dr Tuti Ningseh Mohd-Dom
Deputy Dean
Faculty of Dentistry
UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA

Synopsis

Assessment of clinical competence is today becoming increasingly complex, patient-centered and student-driven. To become a professional, a student has to demonstrate skills, understanding and professional values of an individual ready for beginning independent dental practice. In the dental school setting, assessment of dental students serves: 1. to provide an opportunity for educators to obtain feedback on whether curriculum outcomes are being achieved, 2. to evaluate whether students are meeting minimum requirements to proceed (summative assessment) and 3. to provide feedback to individual students to motivate them for continued improvement (formative assessment).

Traditionally, these assessments tend to be more inclined towards discipline-based; whereby assessment methods consist primarily of observations in the clinic, oral examinations and written tests. In light of the ever-rapidly changing demands of quality dental care, these approaches have been criticized for being inadequate in determining whether learning has actually been accomplished, and whether clinical competency has been achieved. The trend towards a competency-based education seems promising because it is intended to assess more comprehensive and broad learning outcomes that focus on the knowledge, professional skills and behaviour required of new graduates. Challenges towards this move include re-evaluation and revision of existing curriculum, integrating discipline-based objectives with key-task competency statements and urging the faculty to be knowledgeable and supportive of appropriate innovations in dental education.

Conversion from Analog to Digital: Rationale, Protocol and Implementation

Associate Professor Richard Monahan
Associate Professor and Director
Division of Radiology
University of Illinois
College of Dentistry

About the Speaker

EDUCATION

BA, State University of New York, Albany, New York
DDS, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
JD, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois
MS, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio,
Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Certificate in Dental Diagnostic Science
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, School of Dentistry

Synopsis

Traditional diagnostic imaging modalities: 1975 - 2000

• Analog periapical
• Analog panoramic
• Analog skull films
• CT/MRI

Advances in Imaging: 2000 - 2007

• Digital intraoral - direct (CCD/CMOS)
• Digital intraoral - indirect (photophosphor)
• Digital pan/skull
• CBCT

Software Applications

• Digital Image Processing
• EPR
• Third Party

When, how and why should a dental school move forward into these technologies ?

• Available systems, traditional views
• Judging a radiograph: resolution, dynamic range, noise
• Applications + and –
• DICOM
• Sequencing scenarios
• Associated Costs

Information Technology Considerations

• Acquisition
• Transfer
• Storage-backup
• Transmission
• Image Management: PACS, LAN, attachment software

HIS-RIS

• Compression
• Bandwidth
• Printing
• Legacy

Monitors

• Reading rooms
• Consultations

Converting a school of 50 students per class: workload, integration, future developments

• Advanced imaging capture and display
• Implant Therapy
• Orthodontics
• Craniofacial

Q and A

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