A study on the impact of repeated examinations on the performance of 1st-year medical students

Abstract

Background: Examinations are the tools for assessing medical students. Traditional summative assessment helps in assessing knowledge and success of the student at the end of the year whereas formative assessments help in giving timely feedback. Aims and Objectives: This study was done to compare the effect of repeated examinations otherwise formative assessment with the assessment done after 3 months on the performance of medical students. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in the Department of Physiology, ESIC Medical College, Hyderabad. A total of 98 students were taken, they were assessed in the physiology first internals with the essay type questions without any weekly tests then weekly tests were given and assessed in the physiology second internals with the essay type questions after 3 months. Results: Results of first internal and second internals were compared using Student’s test. It was found that there was a significant improvement in the performance of the medical students (P < 0.001) after conducting weekly tests. Conclusions: This study revealed that there is a link between the regular weekly test and increase in the performance of the medical students. It also builds confidence among the medical students.