Contract grading in clinical evaluation

The use of contracts in grading clinical performance has provided faculty with a solution to two important problems. One has been how to ensure that students are graded consistently among the various faculty who are grading the same clinical component of a course. The second has been to increase the opportunity for individualized attention to student learning needs. We have been pleased to see all the faculty members increase their input and involvement in the continuing modifications of the contract. Although we have taken the major responsibility for the semi-annual revisions of the contract, other faculty members have been increasingly more explicit in their evaluations and suggestions as their experience with the contract has expanded. Their confidence in this method of clinical evaluation has increased with each semester of use. We plan to continue in the refinement of the instrument and will develop materials for the use of other faculty groups who are interested in developing similar contracts. We are also designing a survey to attempt to discover how widespread is the use of contract grading in clinical areas.