Abstract
Purpose
In anatomy education, assessment may be done by written, practical or oral methods. These are used to varying degrees in UK medical schools with no consensus on the preferred approach. The purpose of this article is to highlight changes to methods of anatomical knowledge assessment utilised in medical schools since the early 1990s and to present recommended methods of assessment according to the level of medical training.
Methods
Medical students, trainees and specialists in the London (UK) area were surveyed to: (1) identify methods experienced in anatomy education at medical school and (2) gather recommendations. Medical student, trainee and specialist responses were compared using non-parametric tests.
Results
Two hundred and twenty-eight individuals responded to the survey giving a response rate of 53%. Subjects who graduated before 2005 were assessed significantly more frequently by practical (94.2 vs. 33.3%) and oral (84.5 vs. 13.1%) methods than those whose graduation year was 2005 or later. Subjects whose graduation year was 2005 or later were assessed significantly more frequently by written methods, such as EMQs than those whose graduation was before 2005 (68.7 vs. 25.2%). Practical examination was identified as the most recommended method of assessment in anatomy education by medical students (59.1%), trainees (all stages combined; 54.2%) and specialists (51.7%).
Conclusion
Practical assessment is recommended over written and oral methods for the assessment of anatomical knowledge. A formal evaluation of the relative benefits and limitations of available assessment tools is required.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ahmed K, Ashrafian H, Hanna GB, Darzi A, Athanasiou T (2009) Assessment of specialists in cardiovascular practice. Nat Rev Cardiol 6:659–667
Larsen DP, Butler AC, Roediger HL 3rd (2008) Test-enhanced learning in medical education. Med Educ 42:959–966
Lukic IK, Gluncic V, Katavic V, Petanjek Z, Jalsovec D, Marusic A (2001) Weekly quizzes in extended-matching format as a means of monitoring students’ progress in gross anatomy. Ann Anat 183:575–579
Winkelmann A (2007) Anatomical dissection as a teaching method in medical school: a review of the evidence. Med Educ 41:15–22
Van-Der-Vleuten CPM (1996) The assessment of professional competence: developments, research and practical implications. Adv Health Sci Educ 1:46–67
Reid WA, Duvall E, Evans P (2007) Relationship between assessment results and approaches to learning and studying in year two medical students. Med Educ 41:754–762
Smith CF, Mathias H (2007) An investigation into medical students’ approaches to anatomy learning in a systems-based prosection course. Clin Anat 20:843–848
Rushton A (2005) Formative assessment: a key to deep learning? Med Teach 27:509–513
Poljicanin A, Caric A, Vilovic K, Kosta V, Marinovic Guic M, Aljinovic J, Grkovic I (2009) Daily mini quizzes as means for improving student performance in anatomy course. Croat Med J 50:55–60
Ahmed K, Rowland S, Patel V, Ashrafian H, Davies D, Darzi A, Athanasiou T, and Paraskeva P (2010) Is the structure of anatomy curriculum adequate for safe medical practice? Surgeon 8:318–324
Chakravarty M, Latif NA, Abu-Hijleh MF, Osman M, Dharap AS, Ganguly PK (2005) Assessment of anatomy in a problem-based medical curriculum. Clin Anat 18:131–136
Dettmer S, Tschernig T, Galanski M, Pabst R, and Rieck B (2010) Teaching surgery, radiology and anatomy together: the mix enhances motivation and comprehension. Surgical Radiol Anat 1–5
Ahmed K, Keeling AN, Fakhry M, Ashrafian H, Aggarwal R, Naughton PA, Darzi A, Cheshire N, Athanasiou T, Hamady M (2010) Role of virtual reality simulation in teaching and assessing technical skills in endovascular intervention. J Vasc Interv Radiol 21:55–66
Ahmed K, Khan MS, Vats A, Nagpal K, Priest O, Patel V, Vecht JA, Ashrafian H, Yang GZ, Athanasiou T, Darzi A (2009) Current status of robotic assisted pelvic surgery and future developments. Int J Surg 7:431–440
Chow A, Purkayastha S, Nehme J, Darzi LA, and Paraskeva P (2010) Single incision laparoscopic surgery for appendicectomy: a retrospective comparative analysis. Surg Endosc 24:2567–2574
Gogalniceanu P, Madani H, Paraskeva PA, Darzi A (2008) A minimally invasive approach to undergraduate anatomy teaching. Anat Sci Educ 1:46–47
Van Ginneken C, Vanthournhout G, Oste M, Philips W, Weyns A (2005) Assessment and development centre and e-learning in the teaching of anatomy. Anat Histol Embryol 34:53
Hammoud MM, Barclay ML (2002) Development of a web-based question database for students’ self-assessment. Acad Med 77:925
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rowland, S., Ahmed, K., Davies, D.C. et al. Assessment of anatomical knowledge for clinical practice: perceptions of clinicians and students. Surg Radiol Anat 33, 263–269 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-010-0748-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-010-0748-8