RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES Physicians receive little training on proper multiple-choice question (MCQ) writing methods. Well-constructed MCQs follow rules, which ensure that a question tests what it is intended to test. Questions that break these are described as "flawed." We examined whether the prevalence of flawed questions differed significantly between those with or without prior training in...

Methods A short critical care course for nurses (Nursing Intensive Care Skills Training; NICST) was co-designed & delivered by specialist overseas nurse trainers in partnership with Sri Lankan nurse tutors. The impact of the course was assessed using: a pre & post course Multiple Choice Questionnaire (MCQ); a post course Objective Clinical Skills Assessment (OSCA) station & post course feedback...

Incorporating evidence-based practice (EBP) training in dental curricula is now an accreditation requirement for dental schools, but questions remain about the most effective ways to assess learning outcomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare three assessment methods for EBP training and to assess their relation to students' overall course grades. Participants in the study w...

OBJECTIVE To compare medical students' perceptions regarding Objectively Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) with Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) and Oral exam in their semiology course. METHODS We used a questionnaire with 10 questions regarding the quality of exam (Likert scale) and 3 questions regarding the difficulty, being educative and with descriptive scales. The study carried out i...

OBJECTIVE To test the Mayo Clinic Quadratic (MCQ) equation against isotopic glomerular filtration rate, compared with the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and the Cockcroft-Gault formulas, in type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Based on values obtained with iothalamate, 118 type 2 diabetic patients were divided into three groups according to renal function: hyperfiltratio...

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) are a popular large-scale assessment tool. MCQs make it much easier for test-takers to take tests and for examiners to interpret their results; however, they are very expensive to compile manually, and they often need to be produced on a large scale and within short iterative cycles. We examine the problem of automated MCQ generation with the help of unsupervise...

OBJECTIVE We aimed to assess whether cognitive processes change over time in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) receiving selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors without cognitive behavioral therapy and to investigate the factors associated with probable cognitive changes. METHODS During the 16 weeks of the study, 55 patients who met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Men...

AIM The aim of the present study was to examine basic psychometric properties as well as to confirm the five-factor structure of the Polish version ofthe Metacognitions Questionnaire-30 (MCQ-30), a short instrument to measure various aspects of maladaptive metacognitions. METHOD The sample consisted of 315 individuals (239 females and 76 males). Fourty-five of the participants were examined t...

BACKGROUND In-training examination (ITE) is a cognitive examination similar to the written test, but it is different from the Clinical Practice Examination of the Korean Academy of Family Medicine (KAFM) Certification Examination (CE). The objective of this is to estimate the positive predictive value of the KAFM-ITE for identifying residents at risk for poor performance on the three types of K...

Most computer-aided assessments use non-subjective techniques, such as multiple-choice questions (MCQs). However, when preparing summative assessments for honours-level degree students in their final year, MCQs are rarely considered suitable; by and large we tend to use traditional essay-type questions which are not quite so amenable to computer assistance. We present here a technique for evalu...