The quarter model: A proposed approach for in-training assessment of undergraduate students in Indian Medical Schools

Abstract

In-training Assessment (ITA) has the potential to test a wide range of competencies which are not testable by the year-end examination. However, despite high validity, educational impact and feasibility; its implementation is flawed. This paper proposes a quarter model of intraining assessment for implementation in the undergraduate medical curriculum in India. The model proposes that assessments be carried out at least quarterly; no teacher should contribute more than 25% of the marks for any student; no single assessment tool should contribute more than 25% marks; and no assessment should contribute to more than 25% of the total marks. We believe that structuring the implementation using multiple tests on multiple content areas by multiple examiners using multiple tools in multiple settings in the proposed quarter model will not only improve the reliability and validity of internal assessment, but also its acceptability.