Volume 28: Issue 1

Objective

We assessed the level of students' test anxiety, and the relationship between test anxiety and academic performance.

Methods

We recruited 166 third-quarter students. The Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI) was administered to all participants. Total scores from written examinations and objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) were used as response variables.

Results

Multiple regression analysis shows that there was a modest, but statistically significant negative correlation between TAI scores and written exam scores, but not OSCE scores. Worry and emotionality were the best predictive models for written exam scores. Mean total anxiety and emotionality scores for females were significantly higher than those for males, but not worry scores.

Conclusion

Moderate-to-high test anxiety was observed in 85% of the chiropractic students examined. However, total test anxiety, as measured by the TAI score, was a very weak predictive model for written exam performance. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that replacing total anxiety (TAI) with worry and emotionality (TAI subscales) produces a much more effective predictive model of written exam performance. Sex, age, highest current academic degree, and ethnicity contributed little additional predictive power in either regression model. Moreover, TAI scores were not found to be statistically significant predictors of physical exam skill performance, as measured by OSCEs.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to examine predictors for success on Parts I and II of the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) written examinations.

Methods

Two validity studies were conducted to examine the criterion validity of Logan College assessments for Part I and II NBCE scores. Both studies consisted of a longitudinal design to examine the validity of entrance grade point average (GPA), in-program chiropractic course content GPA, and an institutional practice exam on Parts I and II of the NBCE.

Results

Analyses revealed that Part I GPA and practice exam scores combined accounted for 72% of the variance within Part I NBCE scores. Furthermore, every subtest of the Part I NBCE could be reliably predicted by course performance. In the 2nd study, Part I GPA, Part I NBCE score, and Part II GPA accounted for 75% of the variance within Part II NBCE scores.

Conclusions

Internal training and educational assessments (eg, course grades and practice exams) proved to be strong determinants of NBCE performance above and beyond initial levels of preparedness, thus validating the impact of the chiropractic curriculum on NBCE test achievement.

Objective

This study combined a learning outcomes-based checklist and salient characteristics derived from wisdom-of-crowds theory to test whether differing groups of judges (diversity maximized versus expertise maximized) would be able to appropriately assess videotaped, manikin-based simulation scenarios.

Methods

Two groups of 3 judges scored 9 videos of interns managing a simulated cardiac event. The first group had a diverse range of knowledge of simulation procedures, while the second group was more homogeneous in their knowledge and had greater simulation expertise. All judges viewed 3 types of videos (predebriefing, postdebriefing, and 6 month follow-up) in a blinded fashion and provided their scores independently. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to assess the reliability of judges as related to group membership. Scores from each group of judges were averaged to determine the impact of group on scores.

Results

Results revealed strong ICCs for both groups of judges (diverse, 0.89; expert, 0.97), with the diverse group of judges having a much wider 95% confidence interval for the ICC. Analysis of variance of the average checklist scores indicated no significant difference between the 2 groups of judges for any of the types of videotapes assessed (F = 0.72, p = .4094). There was, however, a statistically significant difference between the types of videos (F = 14.39, p = .0004), with higher scores at the postdebrief and 6-month follow-up time periods.

Conclusions

Results obtained in this study provide optimism for assessment procedures in simulation using learning outcomes-based checklists and a small panel of judges.

Educators' influence on tomorrow's leaders:

health-care perspectives of 3rd year chiropractic and medical students

Victor Benavides, David Schimp, Greg Turpin, Texas Chiropractic College

Introduction: Chiropractic educators can influence the profession's leadership by understanding viewpoints of students who will assume the leadership role. Appreciating student perspectives on education and health care will guide educators to influence outcomes of future health-care leaders. Methods: Thirty-three 3rd-year medical and chiropractic students were voluntarily asked to complete an anonymous 35-question survey. The questionnaire, which was similar to a leadership instrument, relates to educational and health-care perspectives. Results: Responses were separated

Association of Chiropractic Colleges Educational Conference XXII

March 19–21, 2015

This call for scientific submissions invites original research that will promote the dissemination and discussion of new information. All of the following items are required for submission and due by September 1, 2014:

Blinded submission for peer review (2100 words or less, upload Word file to website)
Abstract for proceedings (195 words maximum, cut paste in abstract field on website)
Authorship form (signed by all authors, email to Peer Review Chair)
Ethics materials (for all studies involving human subjects/case reports,

Small Teaching Online

Carissa ManriquePhD,

Abdellatif AlsharifPhD,

Kelly BrownMS,

Cynthia CalongneDCS,

Terence CockerhamMA, and

Themba NgwenyaDCS