TY  - JOUR
A1  - Grundlach, Michael
A1  - Baumann, Martin
A1  - Engelmann, Ulrich M.
ED  - Dössel, Olaf
T1  - How Multimodal Examinations Can Increase Sustainable Student Gain by Aligning Teaching and Assessment
JF  - Current Directions in Biomedical Engineering
N2  - Modern industry and multi-discipline projects require highly trained individuals with resilient science and engineering back-grounds. Graduates must be able to agilely apply excellent theoretical knowledge in their subject matter as well as essential practical “hands-on” knowledge of diverse working processes to solve complex problems. To meet these demands, university education follows the concept of Constructive Alignment and thus increasingly adopts the teaching of necessary practical skills to the actual industry requirements and assessment routines. However, a systematic approach to coherently align these three central teaching demands is strangely absent from current university curricula. We demonstrate the feasibility of implementing practical assessments in a regular theory-based examination, thus defining the term “blended assessment”. We assessed a course for natural science and engineering students pursuing a career in biomedical engineering, and evaluated the benefit of blended assessment exams for students and lecturers. Our controlled study assessed the physiological background of electrocardiograms (ECGs), the practical measurement of ECG curves, and their interpretation of basic pathologic alterations. To study on long time effects, students have been assessed on the topic twice with a time lag of 6 months. Our findings suggest a significant improvement in student gain with respect to practical skills and theoretical knowledge. The results of the reassessments support these outcomes. From the lecturers ́ point of view, blended assessment complements practical training courses while keeping organizational effort manageable. We consider blended assessment a viable tool for providing an improved student gain, industry-ready education format that should be evaluated and established further to prepare university graduates optimally for their future careers.
KW  - constructive alignment
KW  - examination
KW  - long-term retention
KW  - multimodal
KW  - practical learning
Y1  - 2021
SN  - 2364-5504
U6  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/cdbme-2021-2019
VL  - 7
IS  - 7/2
SP  - 73
EP  - 76
PB  - De Gruyter
CY  - Berlin
ER  -