European journal of dental education : official journal of the Association for Dental Education in Europe
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
The effect of undergraduate education in communication skills: a randomised controlled clinical trial.
To determine whether students improve their communication skills as a result of supervised patient care and whether a newly implemented communication course could further improve these skills. ⋯ It could be demonstrated that solely interacting with patients during a clinical treatment course did not inevitably improve professional communication skills. In contrast, implementation of a course in communication skills improved the practical competence in dentist-patient interaction.
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Comparative Study
The relationship between formative and summative assessment of undergraduates in oral surgery.
Regular, on-going formative assessments or a more comprehensive end of program summative assessment can be used to assess student's progress. The literature is scarce regarding the use of both types of assessment coincidentally and if the outcomes of formative assessments can predict the grades achieved summatively. This paper investigates whether there is any correlation between the formative assessments used in routine clinical contacts in the Newcastle course and the final summative assessment grade. ⋯ Positive correlation was found within each of the two types of assessment but no correlation was found between the overall grades for the formative and summative assessment. The overall grade achieved by a student in the formative assessment does not appear to predict their grade in the summative. The use of both assessments is beneficial, however, their use together must be considered carefully to avoid confusing students.