Foundations 1 Grading and Assessment Policy

The approach to assessment of student performance in the Bridges Curriculum is a program of assessment that is integrated across the curriculum beyond any one subject or course and which embraces the philosophy of assessment FOR learning. Integrated courses along with integrated assessments and grades encourage students to connect all of the knowledge and skills they are learning in the classroom and in clinical settings, just as a physician integrates knowledge and skills in patient care.  The Bridges Curriculum program of assessment promotes each student’s individual path toward competence in the unique knowledge, skills, and attitudes that characterize the Bridges physician. In the assessment FOR learning philosophy, assessment activities contribute significantly to student learning by giving each student ongoing information (data and other feedback) about performance that is key to guiding their individual next steps in the UCSF MD competencies and milestones.

Seven core competencies and associated milestones define the expectations for students throughout the curriculum. Frequent formative assessments will guide students’ future learning, promote reflection, and help shape students’ values about continuous improvement of their practice of medicine.

The School has developed several key resources to support student learning and professional development:

• Coaches: Learning and professional development is supported throughout medical school by mentorship and guidance from Coaches. Each student is assigned a clinician educator Coach who provides advising and mentoring, teaches foundational clinical skills, and supports the student in reviewing individual progress and setting learning goals.
• Dashboard: The Bridges Student Dashboard houses performance data for each student and provides space for students to reflect on progress with their Coach and to generate individual learning plans. Students take responsibility for the mastery of skills and knowledge with frequent receipt of information in their dashboard, regularly reflecting on ways to improve, and seeking additional practice.
• Physician Identity Weeks/ARCH Weeks*: Physician Identity Weeks ((formerly known as Assessment, Reflection, Coaching, and Health (ARCH) Weeks)) are four weeks in the Foundations 1 phase of the Bridges Curriculum that provide students dedicated time for for reflection and professional growth, opportunities to work with peers, coaches, and other facilitators, and time to pursue activities related to career exploration as well as para-curricular activities of interest.
• Frequent formative assessment activities:  Weekly Checkpoints for medical knowledge throughout Foundations 1 promote learning and self-assessment. Weekly, students complete multiple choice questions (MCQs) and open-ended questions (OEQs) designed to confirm if students have achieved the expected level of competency with the material for the week. The Weekly Checkpoints have additional benefits because the act of testing has a positive direct impact on learning. Numerous studies suggest the active process of retrieving information from memory strengthens memory more and leads to longer retention than re-studying or reviewing material: this phenomenon is called “the testing effect.”