Program Evaluation

The Office of Assessment and Evaluation (OAE) is committed to supporting and facilitating evaluation processes at the MD Program. The OAE is responsible for the evaluation of all learning activities in the MD Program, analysis of the evaluation data, dissemination of evaluation results to the appropriate stakeholders, and for monitoring the survey/research requests that are sent to our students.

Medical students play an active role in the evaluation of teachers, learning activities, courses, and the MD Program as a whole throughout their medical training.

Providing meaningful and actionable feedback is an integral part of a career in medicine, as physicians provide feedback to and receive feedback from their patients and colleagues. The MD Program is committed to helping students develop a culture around evaluation that will equip them to accurately face life after graduation.

Watch this video for more information about Program Evaluation at the MD Program:

Please visit this webpage for regular updates and for information about Program Evaluation activities.

How to give effective feedback

Details of the changes made by the MD Program based in student feedback

Complete the form if you have an education research project which requires approval by the MD Program Associate Dean, if you want to collect information from our students or if you are requesting data from the MD Program

Faculty video testimonials outlining the importance of completing teacher and course evaluations

What are students expected to do?

Students are expected to evaluate their learning activities. The OAE has implemented a new model called “Just in Time”. This model makes evaluations available to students prior to the learning activity, so students can complete the evaluation as soon as the activity is completed. Teachers and facilitators are encouraged to provide students with time at the end of the session to do so. In lectures, QR codes are also provided at the end of the session to take students to the evaluation page where they can complete the evaluation.

Course and teacher evaluation

For a description of course and teacher evaluation, please refer to the MD Program Academic Calendar.

Confidentiality

All evaluation data is completely confidential. Evaluation data is only reported in aggregates.

A teacher will only receive evaluation data if they have received at least 3 evaluations for a given session, this way we protect the identity of the students who completed the evaluations.

Qualitative data is redacted when needed to remove any identifiers, before it is analyzed and shared with stakeholders.

No teacher will/is able to identify students’ responses in the data that is provided. Rest assured that student confidentiality is paramount for the MD Program.

What happens with the evaluation data?

All centrally collected evaluation data is analyzed by the OAE. Evaluation scientists review all quantitative and qualitative data provided on the forms. Quantitative data is analyzed for statistical differences that can highlight areas for possible refinement. Qualitative data is reviewed thematically and used to gain a further understanding of some of the issues or strengths found in the data.

Once the data is analyzed, the OAE shares the data with the appropriate stakeholders (Course Directors, Academy Directors, Theme Leads and Component Leads), who are then asked to complete an Annual Report of the curriculum portion they are responsible for. The Annual Report asks Directors and Leads to reflect on the data provided by the students (analyzed by the OAE), provide explanations for statistical differences and formulate action plans to address areas for refinement in the upcoming year.

The Annual Reports are revised and discussed with the Foundations Director, and Clerkship Director, and ultimately presented at the Foundations, Clerkship, and Curriculum committees.

Committees and students partnerships

The MD Program Evaluation Committee (MDPEC) has student membership and works with students and faculty to ensure an efficient and effective process.

Furthermore, the OAE has an open-door policy and actively seeks feedback from students’ on how to improve our processes. We work together with the MEDSOC to gather students’ feedback and channel it to the appropriate stakeholders to drive change in the program.

The OAE has partnered with student leadership to join the Academy Challenge. Evaluation response rates play a significant role in healthy competition amongst the academies and our office will provide a reward chosen by the students to the winning academy.