Assessment System: Foundational Phase Quizzes

Rationale

Medical schools must ensure that each medical learner is assessed and provided with formal formative feedback early enough during a required course or clerkship. One of the ways in which this is accomplished is through weekly blended quizzes for the foundational phase of the curriculum. These quizzes were added as low stakes assessments to provide information to learners on their strengths and weaknesses and allow them to target areas that need additional work. The quiz performance can also provide information to the course directors and faculty members about how well their teaching of specific content was understood by the learners. The formative weekly blended quizzes promote timely studying of content and spaced repetition facilitates long-term retention of knowledge. Additionally, these quizzes were implemented to identify opportunities for the Course Director or Office of Student Success and Wellness (OSSaW) to provide learning assistance and support.

Scope

The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) applies to all medical learners weekly formative blended quizzes administered in the foundational phase of the curriculum at Brody School of Medicine (BSOM). Courses in the foundational phase of the curriculum that have 50% of the final course grade determined by multiple choice testing must participate in the weekly formative blended quizzes and thus this policy will apply to all these courses.

Definitions

Blended quiz: a quiz that incorporates content from multiple courses in the curriculum.

BSOM: Brody School of Medicine

CD: Course director

ECC: Executive Curriculum Committee

Formative assessment: a low stakes assessment that provides learners and faculty data on strengths and weaknesses of learner understanding of the content taught.

MCQ: multiple-choice questions, written in the single best answer format used by the NBME.

Quiz: a low stakes MCQ assessment.

Standardization of Quizzes

• Quizzes should be graded using points. The purpose of the points is so that each question will be counted equally regardless of the number of questions on the quiz. If appropriate, the Course Director can convert points into percentages to fit into their grading scale.
• Quiz grades must not be dropped in the foundational phase.
• Quizzes must be weighted 10-20% of the final grade for courses in the foundational phase of the curriculum.
• Each hour of lecture or lab session covered on a quiz should have between 1-5 questions.
• Quiz Structure:
  • All foundational science quizzes will be administered using the assessment platform given the following format:
    • Remotely administered
    • Quizzes open after the last scheduled full class session on Fridays and remain open until Sunday at 6:00PM (local time).
    • All quizzes are timed (90 seconds per question)
    • The assessment platform lockdown browser will be applied.
    • Exam ID will be used for verification of test taker ID
    • Learners will only receive 1 download per quiz, unless technical issues arise.
    • Learners are allowed 1 sheet of blank scratch paper.
    • Secure review will be offered for 20 minutes immediately following quiz and is included in the allotted upload deadline.
    • During secure review, learners will only have access to incorrect questions with rationales.
  • Learners must adhere to honor code with the additional following restrictions:
    • All quizzes must be completed independently.
    • Learners must not copy or share quiz content with any learners.
      • Learners are not allowed to take photos/pictures/videos.
      • Learners are not allowed to write down quiz questions or share them electronically.
      • Learners are not allowed to discuss the quiz questions with anyone.
  • Should technical issues arise, review the troubleshooting guide. If the issue still persists learners must contact the assessment platform technical support first.
    • If the assessment platform has not resolved the issue, the OME assessment team will follow up the morning of the next operational business day.
    • Laupus library has loaner devices and/or study rooms available if needed.
• Quizzes should be comprised of a mix of recall and application questions.
• Each course should report the mean and standard deviation for quizzes throughout the foundational year.
• Learner performance on quizzes should not be released in quartiles, however, if an individual learner requests that information, it should be made available.
• Cut off times for material to be covered on the quiz should be as follows:
• Friday quizzes should not have material on the quiz past Thursday at 5PM.
• The CD can change these dates if they provide the information to the entire class at least one week in advance.
• If a learner is granted an excused absence for a quiz, the learner must make-up the quiz on the dates listed on the Block Calendar. Quizzes must not be made up during class sessions.
• Quiz flex days will not be offered.

Responsibilities

There are several key stakeholders involved in the testing process. Listed below are each key stakeholder, along with their expected responsibilities and time frame for completion.

Executive Curriculum Committee

Oversight of quiz grading in the foundational phase.

Course Director

• Ensure the correct information regarding quizzes is in the syllabus, including the percent/points for quiz grading.
• Populating quiz questions into shells at least 2 business days in advance.

Medical Learners (Examinees)

• Learners are responsible for reviewing the mean and standard deviation of each quiz to determine how they are performing in comparison to their peers.
• Learners can ask the course directors for their performance based upon quartiles.
• Learners must adhere to all honor code verbiage for quizzes.
• Learners are responsible for completing quizzes during the given assessment window. Learners that do not complete the assessment within the given assessment window should refer to the Make-Up Assessment Policy.

Associate Dean of Medical Education

• Oversight of quiz implementation processes.
• Communication between faculty, learners, and assessment team.

Testing Administrator

• Creation of quiz shells at the beginning of each block.
• Communication of quiz logistics to all learners.
• Communication of logistical information to Course Directors and learners for any make-up quizzes.

Office of Student Affairs

Communicates if the learner absence was excused or unexcused with the assessment team in OME.

Schedule for Review

This procedure is reviewed and approved by the Curriculum Committees, including the Executive Curriculum Committee, and the Foundational Curriculum Committee every three years.

The Foundational Phase Quizzes policy is posted on the OME website to allow learners and teaching faculty/administration to reference at any time.

Related Policies

Assessment Administration Policy, Absence Policy

Applicable Laws, Regulations & Standards

LCME Standards for Accreditation of Medical Education Programs Leading to the MD Degree: Published March 2022; Standard 8, Element 2; Standard 8, Element 3; Standard 9, Element 4, and Standard 9, Element 8