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Constructive alignment as the design rationale linking learning objectives, case-based teaching, and collaborative assessment

Design · All designs
Evidence · 1 claim (1 for) · 1 study (1 design), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description

The article applies the principle of constructive alignment to justify the whisper exam design: the curricular learning objectives, teaching methods and assessment format are aligned so that “assessments validly reflect students’ achievement of these objectives”. The assessed learning objectives covered clinical topics in medical microbiology, virology, and infection control, “all of which had been covered in the preceding laboratory course mostly in a case-based format”. The authors state instructors are expected to clearly communicate learning objectives and align teaching methods accordingly.

Design Implications

Context

Requirements

  • Clearly communicated learning objectives
  • Teaching methods aligned to those objectives
  • Assessment format that validly reflects achievement of the objectives

Constraints

  • The alignment depends on the preceding laboratory course having covered the assessed objectives in a case-based format

Target Learners

  • Undergraduate medical students

Learning Goals

  • Clinical reasoning and diagnostic decision-making in infectious disease topics

Claims

Examples

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Key Sources

  • Vorbeck L, Ruesseler M, Steinmetzer J, Kohmer N, Kempf VAJ, Brandt C. (2026). The Frankfurt ‘whisper exam’ - a case-based collaborative summative examination to assess clinical decision-making skills in hygiene, microbiology and virology– feasibility and evaluation. BMC Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-026-10018-y
Page metadata
Field Value
type design
id constructive-alignment-whisper-exam-design
title Constructive alignment as the design rationale linking learning objectives, case-based teaching, and collaborative assessment
description The article applies the principle of constructive alignment to justify the whisper exam design: the curricular learning objectives, teaching methods and assessment format are aligned so that “assessments validly refle...
status review
generated by process:settle-candidates on 2026-11-04
trust unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
sources 1 — vorbeck-l-2026

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