Very Short Answer Questions: A Novel Approach To Summative Assessments In Pathology

Figures & data

Table 1 The Pathology Summative Assessment Blueprint Questions Mapped To The Royal College Of Pathologists Undergraduate Curriculum. Each Question Covered One To Three Areas

Knowledge Relating To:	Number Of Questions
Cell biology, pathology and clinical features of biological processes
Inflammation	34
Infection and its treatment	31
Neoplasia and cancer	31
Circulation	34
Intrauterine and childhood development	8
Occupational, environmental and global health	10
Systems of the body
Cardiovascular system	8
Respiratory system	10
Gastrointestinal system	23
Endocrine system	19
Central nervous system	6
Renal and genitourinary systems	14
Reproductive systems	3
Skin	9
Musculoskeletal system	21
Blood & immunity systems	48
General competencies: working with pathologists, working with the coroner, working with patients, and clinical governance and patient safety	22
Total number of questions mapped:	175

Note: Data from The Royal College of Pathologists.¹

Figure 1 Example of computer-marking of a Very Short Answer question (VSAQ). The answers shown in green match those on the list of possible answers and are automatically assigned a mark (1.00). The amber answer has been marked as correct based on its similarity to the acceptable answer. Answers marked by computer as incorrect are shown in red. During the examiner verification process, this can be over-ridden with all identical answers automatically receiving a mark (e.g., “acute lymphocytic leukaemia” in this case).

The Royal College of Pathologists. Pathology Undergraduate Curriculum. 2014.

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