The structured exam has taken over

I am sure I am not the only examiner who hates it

Much has been written about the fairness of newer examination techniques; the standardised nature of the OSCE; its preference by students; and, once it is established, also by the organising staff. But I have not seen surveys of the opinions of examiners and teachers, most of whom have had experience of previous versions of clinical examinations.

In the 1960s and 1970s there was little continuous assessment, and few preliminary tests until the final big bang examination at the end of the clinical course when the students, in the course of a week, had clinical examinations in almost everything—medicine, surgery, obstetrics, paediatrics, psychiatry, etc. For all students it was a considerable ordeal, and for some …