Using OSCE-based evaluation: curricular impact over time

The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is becoming more widely used for performance assessment in dentistry. The department of pediatric dentistry at Baylor College of Dentistry (BCD) began incorporating the OSCE into its curriculum in 1995. This article describes the evolution of the department's use of the OSCE and its impact on teaching and the curriculum. The discussion focuses on logistics and station design, curricular content and order, student anxiety, writing and scoring exams, and curriculum assessment. BCD has found that using an OSCE-based testing format is time-consuming and labor-intensive, but provides unprecedented feedback about students' understanding and pinpoints areas of confusion. The demands of an OSCE-based testing format reveal that students can master, to the level of competency, only a finite amount of information in a given time period. The timed, interactive aspects of the OSCE create high levels of student anxiety that must be addressed. Writing and scoring OSCE items are different from traditional test items. The OSCE is a valuable mechanism to assess the students' progress toward competency. This review of the process of incorporating OSCEs into a curriculum is the foundation for future assessment of the OSCE and its use for curricular improvement.