Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format scored higher on the individual summative assessment (iSAT) than medical students in the original high-stakes format, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r1 · q2
Currency · newest study 2015 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

Reading the evidence codes

q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.

This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.

q2 i? Dental students in the revised low-stress TBL format scored significantly higher on the iSAT than medical students in the original format (5.2% increase, p < .05). → Cynthia J. Miller 2015

Evidence¶

Cynthia J. Miller 2015¶

Cynthia J. Miller, Jeff C. Falcone & Michael J. Metz. (2015). A Comparison of Team-Based Learning Formats: Can We Minimize Stress While Maximizing Results? World Journal of Education, 5(4). http://dx.doi.org/10.5430/wje.v5n4p1

q2 · i? · causal · r1

Quasi-experimental comparison of two cohorts: 161 medical students (6 TBLs, 966 scores) vs 119 dental students (2 pilot TBLs, 238 scores), analyzed by one-way ANOVA with Tukey post-hoc test. The "revised, low-stress format had significantly higher scores on the iSAT"; the discussion reports a 5.2% increase.

"However, the revised, low-stress format had significantly higher scores on the iSAT (n=119-161, p <.05)."

Studies bearing on this claim¶

High-stakes or low-stress readiness tests? This table gathers the studies behind this claim and the 5 narrower claims that bear on it: 1 distinct studies (1 causal), q2, 0 of 1 with an effect size coded. One row per study, codes as each entry records them; no effect is averaged and no verdict is drawn. Built by scripts/synthesize_claim.py from eval/synthesis/; a row that looks wrong is fixed on the claim it comes from.

Study	Design	Effect as recorded	Bears on this claim through
Cynthia J. Miller 2015	q2 · causal · r1	i?	this claim; Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format reported lower stress and frustration t (supports); Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format rated its effectiveness for learning mo (supports); Medical students in the high-stakes TBL format perceive questions as more difficult and le (supports); Dental students in a revised TBL format and medical students in the original format perfor (qualifies); The two TBL formats show no significant differences in perceived team communication, contr (qualifies)

Discussion¶

The comparison is between two non-randomised cohorts, medical students in the original format and dental students in the revised one, so format is confounded with programme, cohort, the number of TBL sessions (six against two pilot sessions) and team size; the difference cannot be attributed to the format alone.

Students taking online and proctored online exams report higher test anxiety than students taking on-campus exams and non-proctored online exams — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Test anxiety is negatively associated with exam performance, and no moderation by proctoring was detected — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Effective implementation of formative assessment is hindered by its complexity, summative-assessment pressure, and teachers' negative early experiences — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Medical students in the high-stakes TBL format perceive questions as more difficult and less fair than dental students in the revised format — related
Dental students in a revised TBL format and medical students in the original format performed similarly on iRAT and tRAT sessions, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts — related
Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format reported lower stress and frustration than medical students in the original format, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts — related
Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format rated its effectiveness for learning more positively than medical students rated the original format, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts — related
In both TBL formats, tRAT and iSAT scores significantly improve over preceding iRAT scores — related
The two TBL formats show no significant differences in perceived team communication, contribution, or peer assistance — related
Analysis of 52 higher-education assessment plans found outcome-based orientation dominant, with dynamic elements subsumed under summative scoring — related
In a Spring 2026 pilot (N=98), 52% of students reported lower stress during the AI-mediated Socratic Test than in traditional exams — related
Two-part collaborative assessment, individual then group answering, transforms summative testing into a learning experience and may reduce test anxiety — related

Page metadata

Field	Value
`type`	`claim`
`id`	`low-stress-tbl-higher-isat-scores`
`title`	`Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format scored higher on the individual summative assessment (iSAT) than medical students in the original high-stakes format, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts`
`description`	`Dental students in a revised low-stress TBL format scored higher on the individual summative assessment (iSAT) than medical students in the original high-stakes format, in a non-randomised comparison of two cohorts`
`status`	`review`
`evidence_strength`	`moderate`
`newest_evidence`	`2015`
`source_checked`	`2026-10-20`
`generated`	by `process:wiki-ingest` on `2026-10-02`
`trust`	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
`sources`	1 — `cynthia-j-miller-2015`

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