A Faculty Toolkit for Formative Assessment in Pharmacy Education.

This paper aims to increase understanding and appreciation of formative assessment and its role in improving student outcomes and the instructional process, while educating faculty on formative techniques readily adaptable to various educational settings. Included are a definition of formative assessment and the distinction between formative and summative assessment. Various formative assessment strategies to evaluate student learning in classroom, laboratory, experiential, and interprofessional education settings are discussed.

Curricular progress assessments: the MileMarker.

A challenge in pharmacy education is to document student learning and retention. With the unveiling of the Standards 2007 by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, the impetus has been placed on colleges and schools of pharmacy that must meet those standards. One possible response to this challenge is administering progress examinations to assess a student's knowledge base at specified points in the curriculum.

Effect of incentives on student performance on Milemarker examinations.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of incentives on student performance on comprehensive cumulative examinations administered at the College of Pharmacy, University of Houston.

Methods: This study is a retrospective longitudinal study conducted over a period of 6 years, from 2000 to 2005. Passing rates on the cumulative examinations administered during the first 3 years of the doctor of pharmacy curriculum were obtained.