Assessment in Health Professions Education - PDM1097

You will learn a systems approach to assessment, situating your individual practices within a broader framework that includes your learners, course(s), institution, accrediting bodies, and the wider community in which you and your trainees work (e.g. patients and their families, and multi-disciplinary teams).

The course explores the close relationship between assessment and learning, and the principles of effective, high-quality assessment. You will develop the skills to design assessment programs that align with the desired objectives and outcomes of your program.

Who should attend

Assessment in Health Professions Education is designed for academic and clinical educators in the health professions who are involved in assessment of students and trainees at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, encompassing speciality training across a range of health professions. Our course is relevant to all educators interested in the theory and practice of contemporary assessment processes within health professions.

What you will learn

Learning objectives

  1. Explain the role of assessment in influencing student learning behaviour and learning process, including the role of feedback.
  2. Apply systems thinking and programmatic approaches to connect individual assessment tasks to enhance current assessment models.
  3. Critically evaluate the effectiveness of assessment tools used to evidence learning in HPE.
  4. Debate contemporary assessment approaches in HPE.

Assessment (assessed version of the course only)

  • Assessment task 1: Assessment System Mind (15%)
  • Assessment task 2: Assessment Tool Analysis (40%)
  • Assessment task 3: Programmatic Assessment Narrated Presentation (45%)

Program structure

This course is completed over a 9-week period and comprises 6 modules. The course activities are designed to be completed in sequence for each module. Please note that some modules run for two weeks and others for just one week.

Each weekly module is designed to support flexible, engaging, and practice-informed learning. The typical structure includes:

  • Discussion Forum – An opportunity to reflect and share your experiences related to the module topic before engaging with the core content.
  • Key Readings – Selected readings are provided to be reviewed prior to attending the live workshop or journal club. Some weeks may include a longer reading list; however, you are only expected to read 2–3 papers that are most relevant or interesting to you.
  • Online Topic Content – Curated learning materials and activities to help you explore key concepts at your own pace.
  • Live Workshop (Fortnightly) – A two-hour interactive session held every second Friday (2:30 PM – 4:30 PM AEST), where you can engage with facilitators and peers.
  • Tutorial / Journal Club (Alternating Fortnights) – An evening session every other week, typically Wednesday 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM (AEST), where you’ll meet with your peers to discuss readings or participate in an applied activity.

On average, you should allow for approximately 12 hours per week for coursework, readings, and live sessions.

Accelerate your qualification

Eligible participants who complete the assessed version of this short course can receive 6 credit points towards:

  • M4009 Graduate Certificate in Health Professions Education
  • M6039 Master of Clinical Simulation
  • M6038 Master of Health Professions Education

Professor Simone Gibson

Professor, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health

Simone is the Director of Education for the School of Clinical Sciences and Director of Monash Centre for Scholarship in Health Education (MCSHE). She leads quality and innovation in education for health professions. She is a Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand Association for Health Professional Educators and on the editorial board of their journal, Focus on Health Professional Education.

Simone is an Advanced Accredited Practising Dietitian, registered with Dietitians Australia, and has over 20 years experience as a clinical dietitian working across all major clinical areas including intensive care, surgery and endocrinology.

Simone was awarded a national Teaching Excellence award in 2018 by the Australian Awards for University Teaching; and in 2017 the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence and the Dean's Award for Excellence in Education (Quality of Teaching), demonstrating her commitment to student training.

Simone is the Director of the Master of Health Professions Education and aims to support the future leaders in clinical and health education.

Doctor Yeliz Boglev

Lecturer, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health

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