Dental Student Assessment Toolbox

Questionnaire survey on hands-on simulation training using a dental humanoid robot (SIMROID®)

INTRODUCTION

A dental humanoid robot, SIMROID®, is able to replicate the actions characteristic of human beings and enable training for communicating with patients and coping with unexpected situations. This study assessed user experiences via a survey questionnaire following hands-on training on the SIMROID®.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 112 participants, consisting of 50 high school students who visited AUSD (Asahi University School of Dentistry) to participate in open campus events, 42 fourth-year students at AUSD and 20 dental students from Mexico State Autonomy University, University of Siena and Peking University took the survey. The participants observed the movements and reactions of a SIMROID® robot placed on a dental unit for approximately 20 min after which they completed a questionnaire survey. Both Japanese and English versions of the questionnaire were prepared for local and visiting foreign dental students. The questionnaire comprised 8 items, with a further two items for those undertaking dental training and an open comment field.

RESULTS

All participants who observed the SIMROID® completed the questionnaire giving a 100% response rate. Generally, simulation training with SIMROID® was highly appreciated by all participants. The comprehensive evaluation score for SIMROID® was 4.56 ± 0.50 points for high school students, 4.05 ± 0.82 points for students at AUSD and 4.70 ± 0.47 points for foreign dental students, showing all participants had a very positive experience and impression of the SIMROID®.

CONCLUSIONS

Therefore, simulation training using SIMROID® seems beneficial learning tool.

Evaluation of problem-based learning in dental trauma education: An observational cohort study

BACKGROUND/AIM

Problem-based learning (PBL) allows higher thinking among dental students and has improved first-time pass-rates in predoctoral pediatric dentistry education. The aim of this retrospective observational cohort study was to evaluate the impact of PBL-based, traumatic dental injuries case discussions on predoctoral dental trauma education.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Student performance and perceptions after receiving dental trauma curriculum with or without PBL-based dental trauma case discussions were evaluated. All the students challenged their simulated patient-based assessments. Three recall-based, objective structured clinical examinations, and critical thinking competencies assessed student knowledge about management of traumatic injuries affecting primary or permanent dentition including avulsion. The scores and number of attempts for each competency were compared between the study cohorts using t-tests. Student's self-perceived learning outcomes were measured through a voluntary, five-question survey. Mantel-Haenszel ordinal Chi-square tests were used to assess for differences in rates of agreement on survey responses from the students. Linear regression was used to assess effect of training on scores adjusting for student type (predoctoral or advanced standing). Pearson's correlations were used to assess association between scores. Significance was set at 0.05.

RESULTS

For the PBL cohort, there was a significant (p > 0.05) improvement in the first-time pass-rates and scores in three out of four competencies. A higher proportion of students in the PBL cohort perceived that their dental trauma education improved their radiographic and diagnostic skills compared to the cohort that did not receive PBL (p > 0.05). There was no correlation between recall-memory versus critical thinking competencies (r < 0.5).

CONCLUSION

The PBL-based dental trauma case discussion had a positive impact on predoctoral student learning and perceived benefits while managing simulated traumatic dental injuries. Due to a lack of correlation between recall-memory and critical thinking assessments, evaluation of predoctoral student's dental trauma competencies should involve multi-model assessment.

Adaptation to Virtual Assessment during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Clinical Case Presentation Examination

BACKGROUND

Case presentation assessment is common in both medicine and dentistry and is known under various names depending on the country and institution. It relates mainly to aspects of diagnosis and treatment planning and is considered highly authentic and useful. The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the movement of this assessment from face-to-face to online. The aim of this investigation was to explore the students' impressions of the two different examination modalities. With this information, a decision on future diets of this examination can be made to accommodate the students' perspectives.

METHODS

Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered using an online, self-administered survey.

RESULTS

The students were split 50/50 regarding which assessment modality they preferred. Overall, they considered the online examination to be fair, and the majority agreed that the online format allowed them to display their knowledge as well as face-to-face.

CONCLUSIONS

The delivery of case presentation examination is possible online. An online case presentation is a fair, useful, and authentic assessment that is appropriate to the needs of the faculty and students. Satisfaction with the two possible methods of conducting this assessment suggests it would be reasonable to conduct this examination online in the future.

Failing to fail phenomena

INTRODUCTION

Clinical competence is the backbone of competence-based dental education. Over time, there has been a paradigm shift toward training students who are capable of independent practice, as opposed to mere academic success.

METHODS

A mixed-method study was undertaken by anonymised email questionnaire to all restorative tutors at the UK Dental School. Demographics and teaching experience were ascertained, along with key questions on the utilisation of online assessment software iDentity. The assessment process for tutors was explored, and barriers experienced when grading students were reported.

RESULTS

The questionnaire was sent to all 51 restorative tutors with a response rate of 59% (n = 30). Only 3.5% of tutors provided verbal feedback and grading to students in person, with 20.7% only completing iDentity gradings following an email reminder. The majority of staff (93.3%) felt comfortable in raising concerns; however, one of the three clinical tutors admitted they had allowed a failing student to a pass. Qualitative analysis demonstrated several themes why tutors were reluctant to fail students: maintaining good relationships, limited supervision, time delay of grading, one-off event and the student's first attempt.

CONCLUSIONS

Grading students as competent as a one-off experience could potentially mask a recurring problem with a student, in turn impacting the student's ability to assess their own weakness and believe themselves to be competent, and potentially be overconfident. Fair and accurate assessment has a significant benefit to student and staff, enabling targeted development to motivate the students and improve the quality of care provided to the patients.

Dental students' perceptions of the long case

INTRODUCTION

The long case examination is used to assess clinical competency in dental education. However, the academic literature, much of which is in medical education, highlights concerns regarding the relevancy and authenticity of the long case. To date, dental students' experiences of the long case have been under-researched. This study examines students' experiences and perceptions of the long case examination at an Australasian dental school.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study was a qualitative investigation. Students participated in interviews to discuss their perceptions and experiences of the long case examination. The interviews were voice-recorded and transcribed, and a thematic inductive analysis was undertaken.

RESULTS

Three main themes emerged from the data: stress, where students described stressors before, during and after the long case; fairness, where students positioned the long case as either fair or not fair; and confusion, where students spoke about their perceived lack of understanding of the examination process and procedures.

CONCLUSION

The concerns students raised regarding stress, fairness and confusion are considered and ways in which the long case might be developed in order to support students' learning are presented. Alternative structures or practices that might be explored include greater calibration of examiners and cases, and enhancements to how students are prepared for and prepare for the examination. The results of this research will inform ongoing development of assessment practices.

The objectives and instructional design of undergraduate endodontic program: multicenter cross-sectional study in Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND

Identify the objectives and the instructional design of undergraduate endodontics in dental schools in Saudi Arabia.

METHODS

The online questionnaire was developed from an original survey conducted in the United Kingdom. The questionnaire was modified for purpose of the study and the region of interest. Then it was directed and emailed to the undergraduate endodontic program directors in twenty-six dental schools in Saudi Arabia. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests.

RESULTS

The response rate was 96.15%. The number of credit hours for preclinical endodontic courses was up to four credit hours (84%). Students were clinically trained to do vital pulp therapies (92%), root canal treatment (100%), and root canal retreatment (68%). The majority of dental schools define the minimum clinical requirements (92%). Practical and clinical competency exams were used to evaluate students' performance (92% and 84% respectively). The students were trained to treat cases of minimal (52%) to moderate complexity (48%). Endodontic treatment consent and difficulty assessment form were used by 32% and 60% of dental schools respectively. There was no significant difference in the instructional design between public and private dental schools (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The endodontic undergraduate objectives were to graduate competent clinicians who acquired basic science of endodontics and who know their limitations as it is necessary for a safe general dental practice. The use of endodontic treatment consent and case difficulty assessment should be wisely considered in clinical training.

The utility of a formative one-station objective structured clinical examination for Substance use disorders in a dental curriculum

Substance use disorders (SUD) are chronic relapsing medical conditions characterised by compulsive substance seeking and use. They constitute a substantial disease burden globally. Labelling of persons with SUD has created barriers to treatment but there are effective management strategies. The dental profession has embraced reforms designed to address the SUD epidemic by promoting continuing education for practitioners and initiating curriculum changes in dental schools. Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) is an evidence-based model for managing patients with SUD. The use of a formative 1-station Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) for learning and assessment in SBIRT, operationalised with the MD3 rating scale is presented in this study. In 3 years of implementation, the SBIRT OSCE successfully integrated into the curriculum of the College of Dental Medicine, Columbia University. Mean score of total adherent behaviours was 11.80 (SD =4.23) (range: 2 - 24) and Cronbach's coefficient alpha for across-items reliability in adherent behaviours was 0.66. Adherent behaviours correlated with the global ratings (r = 0.66). Mean of global rating scores were 2.90 (SD =1.01) for collaboration and 2.97 (SD =1.00) for empathy and the global rating scores correlated with each other (r = 0.85). Histograms of global rating scores resembled normal distribution. The 1-station OSCE is a good model for learning about SBIRT. Psychometric analysis was useful in understanding the underlying construct of the MD3 rating scale and supported its reliability, validity and utility in dental education.

Technical skill training and assessment in dental education

Highly competent clinical practice requires cognitive, psychomotor and affective skills. Therefore, the ultimate goal of dental education is for practitioners to be competent in all of these domains. While many methods have been introduced to assess knowledge and non-technical skills, it is still very difficult for educators to assess technical skill. Assessment methods for technical skills are still not well established because it is very difficult to assure objectivity, validity and fairness. Nonetheless, technical skill is especially important in dental treatments, along with knowledge and attitude. The aim of this review was to summarize the methods of technical skill training in dental education and how they are assessed. This is a literature review. We searched PubMed MEDLINE using terms related to technical skill training and those assessment as of June 2020 and reviewed them. There have been many reports introducing methods of technical skill training and assessment, including the use of digital technology. However, no single assessment method had demonstrated validity of it. Technical skill training is very important in dental education and there are various ways of learning. The validity of current assessment methods is limited; therefore, a combination of several methods may achieve the best results.

Clinical outcomes of performance of dental students using erythritol powder by means of air polishing with ultrasonic debridement with students' assessment: Part II

OBJECTIVE

Assessment of a dental student's clinical performance is essential for providing feedback for improving education. This study evaluated the ability of undergraduate dental students to treat periodontal patients with two techniques, ultrasonic debridement with polishing (UD+P) and the erythritol powder air polishing with ultrasonic instrumentation (EPAP+UD) in a split-mouth design.

METHODS

The study was conducted on undergraduate students with patients suffering from gingivitis and stage I periodontitis with grade A. The evaluation consisted of two parts: first, assessment of the student by clinical indices (full mouth plaque index (FMPI), calculus index (CI), remaining calculus index (RCI), modified gingival index (MGI) and papillary bleeding index (PBI)) at baseline, immediately and after 2 weeks. In addition to assessing treatment time for each student; and second, obtaining student feedback about the two methods used.

RESULTS

Five undergraduate fourth years' students, and thirteen patients participated. Statistically significant decreases in FMPI, CI, MGI and PBI between baseline and 2 weeks post-treatment were noted in both test and control groups. At 2 weeks of inter-group comparisons, there was a statistically significant difference in FMPI and MGI indices, and immediately after the treatment, there was also a significant reduction in FMPI and CI. Treatment time was significantly less for the EPAP+UD method, and it got 10-time method preferring in comparison with the control group (UD+P) by students.

CONCLUSION

The undergraduate dental student has the capacity to treat the periodontal patient using both approaches with a preference for the EPAP+UI approach over UI+P. In addition, this EPAP+UI is a promising method of education.

Comparisons of orthodontic residents' performance and attitudes using 2D, 3D, and virtual reality surgical simulation methods

PURPOSE

Advances in virtual reality technology for surgical simulation methods may improve diagnosis and treatment planning of complex orthognathic surgery cases. The objectives were to assess orthodontic residents' performance and attitudes when treatment planning orthognathic surgery cases using two-dimensional (2D) digital, three-dimensional (3D) digital, and virtual reality (VR) surgical simulations.

METHODS

The study had a mixed methods study design involving 20 graduate orthodontic residents. Their previous experiences, confidence, and competence with orthodontic diagnosis and surgical treatment planning were assessed with a baseline survey. Each resident completed 2D, 3D, and VR treatment planning and simulation tasks in a randomized order and recorded their diagnosis, objectives, treatment plan, and special surgical concerns for each case using a treatment planning worksheet. The worksheets were scored and quantitative data were analyzed. Attitudinal responses to the simulation experience were captured with a post-survey and interview.

RESULTS

The number of total prescribed surgical movements was greater for 3D and VR simulation methods (p = 0.001). There were no differences in the overall total written treatment plan analysis score among the three surgical simulation tasks. Participants took longer to complete the VR and 3D tasks (p < 0.001) and asked more questions regarding manipulation (p < 0.001) and software features (p < 0.002) for higher fidelity tools. Analysis of qualitative feedback showed positive attitudes toward higher fidelity tools with regard to visualization, manipulation, and enjoyment of the task.

CONCLUSIONS

The results demonstrate that simulation methods of increased fidelity (3D and VR) are appropriate alternatives to 2D conventional orthognathic surgical simulation methods when combined with traditional records. Qualitative feedback confirms residents' readiness to adopt VR simulation. However, comprehensive training is needed to increase familiarity and comfort with using the new technology.

Evaluating the effectiveness of a preclinical practice of tooth preparation using digital training system: A randomised controlled trial

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of preclinical training on ceramic crown preparation using digital training system compared with traditional training method.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A sample of 66 participating fourth-year undergraduate dental students were randomly assigned to one of two groups for ceramic crown preparation: experimental group as trained using digital method with Online Peer-Review System (OPRS) and Real-time Dental Training and Evaluation System (RDTES); control group as trained using traditional method with instructor demonstration and evaluation. At the completion of training periods, both groups performed the preparation of ceramic crown of upper left central incisor, which were blindly scored by the experienced instructors under the pre-defined assessment criteria. The results of both were compared using Student's t-test or Wilcoxon signed rank test. The level of significance was P < .05. The questionnaires regarding the benefits or drawbacks of digital training system were answered by the students of experimental group.

RESULTS

Five of 15 items in the assessment outcome of the digital group were significantly better than the traditional group. The questionnaire results from the students of the experimental group indicated 96.97% of the students agreed or strongly agreed that using digital training system could better improve the practical ability than traditional method. The total scores of practical results were significantly positively correlated with the points of the questionnaires.

CONCLUSION

The digital training system with OPRS and RDTES might be a good alternative to the traditional training method in the preclinical course of dental practice.

Assessing the application of knowledge in clinical problem-solving: The structured professional reasoning exercise

INTRODUCTION

Clinical reasoning is a fundamental and core clinical competence of healthcare professionals. The study aimed to investigate the utility of the Structured Professional Reasoning Exercise (SPRE), a new competence assessment method designed to measure dental students' clinical reasoning in simulated scenarios, covering the clinical areas of Oral Disease, Primary Dental Care and Restorative Dentistry, Child Dental Health and Dental Practice and Clinical Governance.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 313 year-5 students sat for the assessment. Students spent 45 minutes assimilating the scenarios, before rotating through four pairs of 39 trained examiners who each independently assessed a single scenario over a ten-minute period, using a structured marking sheet. After the assessment, all students and examiners were invited to complete an anonymous perception questionnaire of the exercise. These questionnaires and the examination scores were statistically analysed.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Oral Disease showed the lowest scores; Dental Practice and Governance the highest. The overall Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) was 0.770, whilst examiner training helped to increase the ICC from 0.716 in 2013 to 0.835 in 2014. Exploratory factor analysis revealed one major factor with an eigenvalue of 2.75 (68.8% of total variance). The Generalizability coefficient was consistent at 0.806. A total of 295 students and 32 examiners completed the perception questionnaire. Students' lowest examination perceptions were an "Unpleasant" and "Unenjoyable" experience, whilst the highest were "Interesting", "Valuable" and "Important". The majority of students and examiners reported the assessment as acceptable, fair and valid.

CONCLUSION

The SPRE offers a reliable, valid and acceptable assessment method, provided it comprises at least four scenarios with two independently marking and trained assessors. 3.

Automated outcome scoring in a virtual reality simulator for endodontic surgery

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

We address the problem of automated outcome assessment in a virtual reality (VR) simulator for endodontic surgery. Outcome assessment is an essential component of any system that provides formative feedback, which requires assessing the outcome, relating it to the procedure, and communicating in a language natural to dental students. This study takes a first step toward automated generation of such comprehensive feedback.

METHODS

Virtual reference templates are computed based on tooth anatomy and the outcome is assessed with a 3D score cube volume which consists of voxel-level non-linear weighted scores based on the templates. The detailed scores are transformed into standard scoring language used by dental schools. The system was evaluated on fifteen outcome samples that contained optimal results and those with errors including perforation of the walls, floor, and both, as well as various combinations of major and minor over and under drilling errors. Five endodontists who had professional training and varying levels of experiences in root canal treatment participated as raters in the experiment.

RESULTS

Results from evaluation of our system with expert endodontists show a high degree of agreement with expert scores (information based measure of disagreement 0.04-0.21). At the same time they show some disagreement among human expert scores, reflecting the subjective nature of human outcome scoring. The discriminatory power of the AOS scores analyzed with three grade tiers (A, B, C) using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). The AUC values are generally highest for the {AB: C} cutoff which is cutoff at the boundary between clinically acceptable (B) and clinically unacceptable (C) grades.

CONCLUSIONS

The objective consistency of computed scores and high degree of agreement with experts make the proposed system a promising addition to existing VR simulators. The translation of detailed level scores into terminology commonly used in dental surgery supports natural communication with students and instructors. With the reference virtual templates created automatically, the approach is robust and is applicable in scoring the outcome of any dental surgery procedure involving the act of drilling.

Teaching and assessment of communication skills in undergraduate dental education - a survey in German-speaking countries

INTRODUCTION

Teaching communication is perceived to be of importance in dental education. Several reports have been published worldwide in the educational literature describing modifications of the dental curriculum by implementing the teaching of communication skills. Surveys which evaluate the current state of training and assessment of communication skills in dental education in different countries exist already in some countries, but little information is available about German-speaking countries.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

In a cross-sectional study with the aim of a census, all 36 dental schools in Germany (30), Austria (3), and Switzerland (3) were surveyed.

RESULTS

The present survey revealed that at 26 of the 34 dental schools (76%), communication skills training has been implemented. Training of communication skills mainly takes place between the 6th and the 9th semester. Ten schools were able to implement a partly longitudinal curriculum, while the other sites only offer stand-alone courses. Of the 34 dental schools, six assess communication skills in a summative way. Three of those schools also use formative assessments for their students. Another seven sites only use formative assessment. From the various formats of assessment, OSCE is mentioned most frequently.

CONCLUSION

The necessity to train and assess communication skills has reached German-speaking dental schools. The present survey allows an overview of the training and assessment of communication skills in undergraduate dental education in German-speaking Europe.

Best practices in summative assessment

The goal of this review is to highlight key elements underpinning excellent high-stakes summative assessment. This guide is primarily aimed at faculty members with the responsibility of assigning student grades and is intended to be a practical tool to help throughout the process of planning, developing, and deploying tests as well as monitoring their effectiveness. After a brief overview of the criteria for high-quality assessment, the guide runs through best practices for aligning assessment with learning outcomes and compares common testing modalities. Next, the guide discusses the kind of validity evidence needed to support defensible grading of student performance. This review concentrates on how to measure the outcome of student learning; other reviews in this series will expand on the related concepts of formative testing and how to leverage testing for learning.

Students' perception of peer-assessment in the context of a treatment planning course

OBJECTIVE

Peer assessment is grounded in philosophies of active learning, and it would seem that this tool is a viable method for critical thinking development. The purpose of this article was to present how junior students at Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine (CWRU) perceive the value of a peer-assessment activity in the context of a treatment planning course.

METHODOLOGY

As a part of the final exam for the junior year Treatment Planning course, students were requested to evaluate a de-identified assignment submitted by one of their peers. Following the exam, a survey was sent to the students to determine how they perceived the peer-assessment activity and how this relates to other learning experiences in the course.

RESULTS

Our results show that students' perception of the benefit of peer grading was not associated with any individual peer-assignment characteristics, or course characteristics. Similar results were obtained regarding the perceived benefit of identifying evidence. Moderate correlations were observed between peer evaluation characteristics.

CONCLUSIONS

It was concluded that: (i) junior dental students are not homogenous in their opinions regarding the value of an activity related to evaluation of a peer's assignment and (ii) student's perceptions regarding the peer-grading component of peer assessment were not correlated with perceptions related to other learning processes in the treatment planning course.

Praxis teaching in the ambit of learning assessment of endodontics in a Chilean university

The practice of assessing must ensure that the outcome of the process be a reflection of the learning achieved by students. The aim of this study was to describe the essential attributes of the praxis teacher in the area of Endodontics Learning Evaluation, in the School of Dentistry at the Universidad de Concepción, Chile. This study is designed to diagnose the reliability and objectivity of assessing the learning process, as a framework for innovation, and with a focus on evaluating endodontics skills. This hermeneutic study has a qualitative methodology. It was based on in-depth semi-structured interviews applied to 14 students and 5 teachers, and two focus groups consisting of eight students each. When the study was conducted, the research findings indicated that the evaluation process was not objective and lacked established criteria, and especially a guide to determining the skills. The theoretical evaluation was only summative. The formative role was not formally established. The subjects answered mostly psychometric instruments by multiple choice and with short or extended answers. It was concluded that teacher practice held meaning only if it was backed by academic expertise in the area of endodontics, according to no clear criteria or validated instruments. On the other hand, the groundwork was in place for using an epistemological style in endodontics. This provided a basis for the actual improvements, and allowed the tools developed to be dialectically interconnected with teacher experience. A quantitative analysis was not considered, but could be supplemented later to enhance the data analysis in a future study.

BDJ UCL Eastman CPD programme: an online survey

OBJECTIVE

To ascertain from participants of the BDJ UCL Eastman CPD programme its value to their professional endeavours, and in particular to determine whether they would object to making it more robust especially in the way that the CPD hours are achieved.

DESIGN

An online questionnaire survey.

METHOD

Participants were encouraged to complete an online survey of nine questions by 31 July 2012.

RESULTS

Of the 3,292 participants who began the survey, it was completed by 3,070 (93.2%). Of those, 2,952 (91.1%) thought that additional learning tools would be helpful. The ability to resubmit incorrect answers was preferred by 2,549 (80.1%) of the respondents. Two thousand two hundred and fourteen participants (69.9%) raised no objection to making the scoring system more robust and 953 (30.1%) objections to this proposition were recorded. Ninety-eight percent (3,128) favoured the regular inclusion and flagging of core subjects and 95% of these respondents thought it would be useful to record these separately. The most preferred method of obtaining verifiable CPD was cited by 1,075 (39.5%) participants as reading journals followed by attending lectures and hands-on courses. The BDJ was the preferred journal to achieve both verifiable and general CPD. Most participants (1,930; 67.7%) use a home computer to take part in this initiative while a significant minority use tablets and smart-phones.

CONCLUSION

This survey showed that the BDJ UCL Eastman CPD journal-based verifiable CPD programme remains a popular method of fulfilling the GDC regulations and that the majority of participants are in favour of making the process more rigorous.

The TRIPSE: a process-oriented exam for large undergraduate classes

The TRIPSE (tri-partite problem solving exercise), a process-oriented exam that mimics the scientific process, was used previously in small classes (15-25). Provided limited data, students frame explanations and design experimental tests that they later revise with additional information. Our 6-year experience using it with larger numbers (155-204) in a freshman biology course, suggests that it could provide a means of assessing individual student performance. Students rated the learning value of this experience to be significantly higher than a standard MCQ on a 10-point scale (TRIPSEs 8.2, CI 8.1/8.4 vs. MCQs 4.9, CI 4.8/5.1, n = 712). Additionally, we tested one cohort (n = 146) with a group TRIPSE (groups of 6), and found that this variant also provided a valuable learning experience (8.0, CI 7.7/8.3).

Lessons learned from undergraduate students in designing a science-based course in bioethics

Columbia University offers two innovative undergraduate science-based bioethics courses for student majoring in biosciences and pre-health studies. The goals of these courses are to introduce future scientists and healthcare professionals to the ethical questions they will confront in their professional lives, thus enabling them to strategically address these bioethical dilemmas. These courses incorporate innovative pedagogical methods, case studies, and class discussions to stimulate the students to think creatively about bioethical issues emerging from new biotechnologies. At the end of each course, each student is required to submit a one-page strategy detailing how he or she would resolve a bioethical dilemma. Based on our experience in teaching these courses and on a qualitative analysis of the students' reflections, we offer recommendations for creating an undergraduate science-based course in bioethics. General recommendations include: 1) integrating the science of emerging biotechnologies, their ethical ramifications, and contemporary bioethical theories into interactive class sessions; 2) structuring discussion-based classes to stimulate students to consider the impact of their moral intuitions when grappling with bioethical issues; and 3) using specific actual and futuristic case studies to highlight bioethical issues and to help develop creative problem-solving skills. Such a course sparks students' interests in both science and ethics and helps them analyze bioethical challenges arising from emerging biotechnologies.

Changing assessment practice through in situ faculty development

The aim of this article is to describe the process of an in situ staff development process with the objective to influence change in assessment practice. An in situ training course focusing on writing questions for written examinations, but also including some contextual aspects of assessment practice, was therefore developed and implemented. The anticipated change was measured against Kirkpatrick's four levels for evaluating training programmes. As a whole, the reaction from the participants was positive (Kirkpatrick Level 1), and in a number of instances, learning, which includes changes in attitude, knowledge and skills (Kirkpatrick Level 2) and change in behaviour (Kirkpatrick Level 3), was observed. To conclude, the staff development initiative in the form of in situ assessment training facilitated change resulting in an improvement in assessment practice in the School in a relatively short period of time.

Steps to pluripotent learning: provocative teaching

Education involves interactions between students and teachers in a societal framework. Teachers can best serve their students and society by making students flexible enough to thrive under uncertain conditions. They should, in a sense, nourish, nurture, provoke, and stimulate pluripotent "educatoblasts."