REDUCING THREATS TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A COMPETENCY-BASED PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT SYSTEM: A Commentary

by the Headmistress

Bargagliotti, Luttrell, and Lenburg state that performance in nursing service and education has been an activity that brings about feelings of apprehension and fear of failure. Because of this, they identified and reduced the threats involved in changing from a process-oriented evaluation system to a competency-based performance assessment system by providing approaches for protecting the investments of stakeholders as well as by addressing the risks of system failure and suggesting future directions.

I agree with the authors when they stated that student anxiety is increased by any evaluation system with which they have had little or no experience, I should know because I feel exactly the same thing. What I like about the competency based performance system is that the students will be informed from the beginning of the course which specific clinical outcomes/skills and which level of competence they are be expected to achieve. In this manner, the students during their clinical experience will be able to practice the skills that they are required to learn. With continued practice and learning, the students are enabled to prepare themselves for the competency based examination wherein they will be evaluated according to their competencies in the areas of critical thinking, problem solving, planning, analyzing or designing through written papers, presentations, projects, and various psychomotor and health assessment skills.

Focusing on protecting the investment of students in nursing education, I would like to briefly state my opinion on requiring collective/group outputs for most nursing courses in the _____. I firmly believe that group outputs do not ensure a just and rightful evaluation for each student because they are evaluated according to the general output of team. I have observed that most ___ instructors put so much value in developing team spirit and that the values of integrity and individualism have not been emphasized. If the system of teaching and evaluation will not be modified, and that the values bound for students will not be delineated, then the system will continue to pose an unjust evaluation system to students. Competent students will be deprived not only of being acknowledged but more importantly a chance to advance to the next level while incompetent members will stay unaware of how far they are being left behind.

Evaluation is not an easy task. A perfect assessment and evaluation system may never exist. However, we are all challenged to understand the perspectives of the different stakeholders involved in nursing service and education so that we will be able to protect their investments.

REFERENCE:
Bargagliotti, T., Luttrell, M., Lenburg, C. (Sept. 30, 1999): "Reducing Threats to the Implementation of a Competency-Based Performance Assessment System" Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. Available http://www.nursingworld.org/ojin/topic10/tpc10_5.htm