Evaluating Student Performance in the Experiential Setting with Confidence.
This paper proposes that pharmacy schools should have a functional experiential evaluation system (EES). An EES consists of multiple assessment methods, guidelines for their optimal use, and procedures that promote faculty-student communication about performance. With respect to selection of assessment methods, pharmacy educators are encouraged to adopt the combination of observation-based ratings, Objective Structured Clinical Exams (OSCEs), and examinations consisting of Extended Matching Items (EMIs). Practical strategies an individual instructor may use to enhance the accuracy of observation-based ratings and examinations are described. With respect to OSCEs, the authors call for collaborative efforts among consortia schools in concert with the Center for the Advancement of Pharmaceutical Education (CAPE). At the school level, the entire faculty must be accountable for maintaining a quality EES that promotes faculty-student communication about performance. Only after implementation of a comprehensive quality EES can a school’s faculty feel confident in decisions about students’ preparedness to deliver pharmaceutical care.