Formative Assessment and Feedback

Authorizing Body:                         Curriculum Committee

Date Issued:                                   October 4, 2018

Last Updated:                                February 20, 2019

Scope and Applicability:            All M.D. Program Curriculum

Rationale:

To establish a mechanism for providing formative feedback and assessment.

Procedures:

1. All directors of OUWB required courses and clerkships must identify appropriate methods of formative assessment.
2. The assessment and feedback (e.g., quizzes, practice tests or items, or faculty feedback) should provide students with information that can be used to guide their progress in the required course or clerkship.
3. The medical school's curricular governance committee ensures that each medical student is assessed and provided with formal formative feedback early enough during each required course or clerkship to allow sufficient time for remediation. Formal feedback occurs at least at the midpoint of the course or clerkship. A course or clerkship less than four weeks in length provides alternate means by which medical students can measure their progress in learning. 
4. End of course or clerkship evaluations will be used by the Office of Medical Education and Curriculum Committee to monitor the occurrence and quality of formative assessment and feedback.

Definitions:

Formative Assessment: Provides students with the feedback to guide progress.  These assessments are either no- or low-stakes (i.e., do not count for a significant portion of the grade).