Development and validation of an assessment sheet for all-ceramic crown preparations: A methodological study

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Prosthodontics
• Assessment and Evaluation

Background:

• Clinical skills laboratories are crucial for dental student training in procedures like all-ceramic crown preparations.
• Accurate and reliable evaluation of these skills is essential for effective learning.
• Existing checklists for pre-clinical skill evaluation face practical implementation challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate the reliability of a novel assessment sheet for all-ceramic crown preparations.
• To establish a consistent and objective method for grading dental students' clinical skills.

Main Methods:

• The study involved two phases: development and judgment-quantification.
• Two examiners used the assessment sheet to evaluate student preparations, assessing criterion validity.
• Statistical analyses included Spearman's correlation, Cohen's Kappa for inter- and intra-examiner agreement, and Item-Content Validity Index (I-CVI) and Scale-Content Validity Index (S-CVI) for content validity.

Main Results:

• The developed assessment sheet demonstrated reliability and strong content validity.
• A significant negative correlation was found between assigned grades and observed errors.
• The sheet defined performance levels, enabling objective evaluation and determination of passing grades; inter- and intra-examiner agreement was fair to moderate.

Conclusions:

• The assessment sheet provides a reliable, consistent, and objective method for evaluating all-ceramic crown preparations.
• This tool can benefit both dental students and instructors in clinical skills assessment.
• Further research is recommended to explore the impact of this assessment sheet on student learning outcomes.