Weightage of formative examinations in certifying examination of pharmacology: an opinion poll and relative performance of learners

Abstract

A study was carried out to obtain the view points of 186 graduate students regarding formative examination, it's frequency, weightage in certifying examination, feedback about progress made or lack of it and the planning of learning activities. Majority of students were of the opinion that the class tests and tutorials should be conducted frequently and sufficient weightage of formative examinations should be given in the certifying examination. They were able to get feed back and plan out the learning activities accordingly. The performance in both theory and practicals of formative and certifying examinations in Pharmacology was analyzed. The average percentage marks secured by the students in both theory and practical of the certifying examination were higher than those secured in the formative examination. However, the reliability of theory examinations was more than the practical examinations. A positive correlation was observed between the marks of formative and certifying examination between theory as well as of practicals. The Pearson's Correlation Coefficient gamma was +0.932 and +0.715 while Spearman's rank order Coefficient rho was +0.792 and +0.649 for theory and practicals respectively suggesting positive and strong correlation.