A Comparative Study on Assessing the Summative Assessments Before and After Implementing Competency-Based Medical...

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Forensic Medicine and Toxicology

Background:

• Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) has been implemented in India since 2019-2020.
• CBME emphasizes ongoing assessments to monitor learner progress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of CBME in undergraduate Forensic Medicine assessments.
• To compare summative assessment question papers before and after CBME implementation.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 32 summative examination question papers from eight Indian medical universities (2017-2020).
• Categorization of questions based on Bloom's revised taxonomy (cognitive domain) and structure.
• Comparison with pre- and post-CBME benchmarks.

Main Results:

• Predominance of unstructured questions and focus on the 'remember' cognitive level.
• Skewed mark allocation towards specific topics, leading to inadequate competency coverage.
• Core areas like medical jurisprudence and toxicology were poorly assessed.

Conclusions:

• Summative exam questions in Forensic Medicine demonstrate poor quality and misalignment with CBME.
• There is a critical need to review and improve university blueprints for better assessment alignment.