Workshop on Construction of Case Cluster MCQs what, why and how: Reaction of faculty

Abstract

Background: Integrated curriculum is applied to most of the medical colleges, but the assessment is still disintegrated. There is a great need to develop faculty on construction of complex assessment items like Case Cluster MCQs, which are considered best for assessing PBLs. To align assessment strategies with teaching strategies, a workshop was arranged to develop faculty on a new skill, how to construct case cluster Aim: To assess the reaction of faculty in terms of satisfaction at the end of the workshop. Methods: A quantitative program evaluation study was carried out on 75 faculty members of basic and preclinical sciences of a medical college, including demonstrators, post graduate trainees, assistant professor, associate professor and professor. 4-hour workshop was conducted three times, counting 25 participants each time. After the workshop, participant’s “reaction” was measured through self-reported “post workshop satisfaction questionnaire” on 5-point Likert scale. Along with descriptive statistics and percentages, Pearson Correlation Coefficient was used to analyze the data. Results: Satisfaction of participants after the workshop (n=75) was 93.3 % on a 5-point Likert scale (p=0.00). Range of responses of all the 10 variables fell between 3.93 and 4.61. 55.8 % (p= 0.00) of participants strongly agree and 38.1% (p=0.00) agree on parameters of workshop. Among all the participants 35.7 % agree and 64.3 % strongly agree that workshop enhanced their learning about case luster MCQs. Not a single participant disagrees. This shows a positive attitude of participants towards the workshop. Conclusion: It is remarkable that a positive change in the attitude of faculty members in terms of the importance of ‘CC MCQs for assessing PBLs’ took place as a result of a single day workshop. Aiming case cluster MCQs as part of assessment can help students to learn better and improve their clinical reasoning.