The correlation of student performance in preclinical and clinical prosthodontic assessments.

Full Abstract

Tracking student performance in preclinical and clinical courses can be helpful in developing and refining a curriculum. Our objective was to correlate student performance on three fixed prosthodontic examinations taken by eighty junior dental students. Examinations included a knowledge-based objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), a manual skills exercise completed on a typodont (Typodont), and a competency casting exam (Casting CE) on a patient. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the OSCE and Typodont exam scores, as independent variables, were not statistically significant predictors (P=0.07; P=0.87, respectively) of Casting CE exam performance, which was the dependent variable. Correlations were weak for the OSCE (r=0.21) and nearly nonexistent for the Typodont exam(r=0.03) when compared to the Casting CE. Our results indicate a weak correlation between an OSCE-based knowledge exam measuring students' knowledge of critical errors in preparations and castings and a competency exam involving the preparation of a full veneer crown. Results also indicate virtually no correlation between a typodont preparation examination designed to provide a measure of students' clinical skill and a clinical competency exam involving the preparation of a full crown.

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Author information

Author/s: Curtis, Donald A (DA); Lind, Samuel L (SL); Brear, Sheila (S); Finzen, Frederick C (FC);

Affiliation: Department of Preventive and Restorative Dental Sciences, D-3212, School of Dentistry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143-0758, USA. Don.Curtis(-atsign-)ucsf.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article

Journal: Journal of dental education (J Dent Educ), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2007-Mar; vol 71 (issue 3) : pp 365-72

Dates: Created 2007/03/28; Completed 2007/05/04;

PMID: 17389571, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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