Explaining the Dimensions of Effective Clinical Evaluation in Medical Education: Medical Students' Perspectives

Abstract

Introduction: Clinical evaluation is an essential part of medical students' education and can have a great impact on the learning process and development of their clinical skills. This study examined medical students' perspectives on clinical evaluation.

Method: This qualitative study used thematic analysis method and the six-step framework developed by Brown and Clark to analyze data to examine the perspectives of 31 medical students in their clinical internship and clinical training levels from Yazd and Kerman Universities of Medical Sciences in the academic year 1403-1404. Participants expressed their views on clinical evaluations through semi-structured interviews. The accuracy and validity of the data were ensured through the criteria of Goba and Lincoln.

Results: The results of the content analysis showed that participants raised two main themes and five sub-themes regarding clinical evaluation. The main themes included evaluation goals (Pedagogical orientation, feedback-based improvement cycle and perceived competence) and the evaluation process (learning-evaluation paradigm fit and educational justice).

Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate that medical students consider clinical assessment to be effective when it has three key characteristics: first, it acts as a tool to guide the learning process, second, it provides constructive and timely feedback, and third, it is implemented with educational equity. From the participants’ perspective, when assessments are appropriate to learning objectives and conducted fairly, they not only improve the quality of education, but also increase students’ self-confidence and motivation. These results emphasize the need to review clinical assessment practices by considering these key components.