The validity and reliability of a clinical performance rating scale

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Medical Education
• Performance Assessment

Background:

• Rating scales are common in medicine for clinical performance evaluation.
• In dentistry, rating scales are primarily used for technical skills assessment.
• A need exists for comprehensive performance evaluation in dental education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of different rating scales in dental education.
• To determine faculty preference for a specific performance rating scale.
• To assess the utility of performance ratings beyond technical skills and GPA.

Main Methods:

• A pretest of three performance scales was conducted.
• Faculty selected a preferred 20-item, six-point Likert scale.
• Clinic directors rated student performance, and interrater reliabilities were calculated.
• Student performance ratings were compared with technique grades and preclinical GPA.

Main Results:

• Faculty preferred a Likert scale assessing personal, interpersonal, and professional qualities.
• Interrater reliabilities (.62–.83) were superior to those in medical education.
• Performance ratings provided additional competence information beyond GPA and technique grades.
• Performance ratings differentiated students who completed clinical requirements on time from those who did not.

Conclusions:

• A comprehensive rating scale is valuable for dental student assessment.
• The preferred Likert scale offers potential for student feedback and program evaluation.
• Performance ratings contribute uniquely to evaluating overall student competence in dentistry.