Abstract
The emergence and global spread of COVID-19 has disrupted the traditional mechanisms of education throughout the world. Institutions of learning were caught unprepared and this jeopardised the face-to-face method of curriculum delivery and assessment. Teaching institutions have shifted to an asynchronous mode whilst attempting to preserve the principles of integrity, equity, inclusiveness, fairness, ethics, and safety. A framework of assessment that enables educators to utilise appropriate methods in measuring a student’s progress is crucial for the success of teaching and learning, especially in health education that demands high standards and comprises consistent scientific content. Within such a framework, this paper aims to present a narrative review of the currently utilised methods of assessment in health education and recommend selected modalities that could be administered in an asynchronous mode during the COVID-19 pandemic. Assessment methods such as open-ended short answer questions, problem-based questions, oral exams, and recorded objective structured clinical exams (OSCE) would be appropriate for use in an asynchronous environment to assess the knowledge and competence of health professional students during COVID-19. Fairness and integrity can be ensured by using technological tools such as video and audio recording surveillance.
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic is known as the coronavirus pandemic
multiple-choice questions (MCQs), extended matching questions (EMQs), and true/false questions possess all psychometric properties of a good assessment, these modalities may not be recommended for online asynchronous assessment because they are more subjected to cheating which can have serious implications on the validity of examinations
Mini-CEX, DOPS, objective structured clinical exams (OSCE) assessment are not feasible during a pandemic because face-to-face interaction is required at the site, which is not permissible due to gathering restrictions and social distancing
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic is known as the coronavirus pandemic. It is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is supporting countries in their efforts to mitigate the immediate impact of school closures, especially more vulnerable and disadvantaged communities, by facilitating the continuity of education for all through remote learning. This pandemic has exposed many inequities and inadequacies in the diverse education systems across the globe
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