Click on the video below for a short explanimation on progress testing!
What is progress testing?
- Progress testing is a way of cognitive testing which promotes long-lasting, deep learning strategies.
- It consists of a longitudinal assessment strategy covering the complete domain of medical knowledge and is administered periodically to students of all academic years.
- Progress tests can be used at the undergraduate and postgraduate level.
Why progress testing?
- Teachers and students recognize the existence of the “study for the test” phenomenon, in which students frequently forget many of the contents that have been studied. This effect is prevented in progress testing, because it is not linked to any specific module/block.
- Progress Testing is a rich source of information about students’ knowledge growth in all medical sub-domains.
- Feedback obtained from the progress test results helps students in the early identification of the areas of study that need more focus.
- Progress testing has been shown to be a valid and reliable measure of student’s long-term, meaningful learning
- Evidence has shown that progress testing has a positive effect on medical professionalism, learning and achievement, as it helps with the long-term retention of contents.
- Evidence has also shown that progress testing can be a helpful tool for students to prepare for and succeed in external examinations.
- Progress tests enable optimal, continuous benchmarking, by providing valuable information to deans and other stakeholders.
- Ultimately, progress testing is a helpful tool for the quality assurance of medical schools, identifying which areas deserve more attention in terms of faculty development and curricular governance.