Perception of students and faculties about objective structured practical examination (ospe) as a method of assessment of competence in biochemistry as against the conventional method

Background: Undergraduate medical curriculum have defined objectives and competences that medical student need to acquire. Basic practical skills are one of them and assessment through objectivity and structuring of questions has gained importance in the practical evaluation. Aims & Objective: To determine the student and faculty perception regarding OSPE as a method of assessment of competence in Biochemistry practical session as against the conventional method.
Material and Method: The study was conducted on 150 first MBBS students. After the orientation, students were assessed by conventional method initially and then by OSPE for their practical skills. Assessment of perception was done by taking feedback from the students and faculties using reflection, structured questionnaire and marks obtained by student’s by the two methods. Result: There was no significant difference in the mean of students’ score in OSPE with conventional method. In both the assessments students believed that questions were linked to the curriculum with clear objectives. 77.9% agreed that OSPE reduced bias and there was uniformity in assessment. 58.2% preferred it over conventional exams, 77.9% wanted OSPE to be continued as a regular assessment tool despite being time consuming and stressful. 40.15%students reflected that the time given was too short in OSPE. Faculties’ feedback reflected that apart from well known advantages of OSPE, there was a scope of giving immediate feedback in the conventional method and hence should be included for formative assessment. Conclusion: OSPE was well appreciated by the students. OSPE tests different components of competency better and it should be included in summative evaluation to improve students’ performance