Third Annual Exam Summit a Resounding Success
The third annual PAEA Exam Development Summit officially began with a welcome reception and dinner where everyone came together to meet and reconnect with their colleagues.
Friday morning, the group gathered again for breakfast and a plenary talk from Matthew Burke who discussed strategies for thinking about and developing difficult exam questions. His talk got the group thinking about the task ahead and the theory behind item construction.
The End of Curriculum Exam Development Board convened for the first time to learn about and begin the development process for their exam. The release is still a couple of years away, as building a new product takes time. But this group had valuable discussions that will aid the development process and inform the roll-out plan over the next few years.
On Friday evening, the group took a much-needed break from hotel conference rooms to attend a Sweet 16 game of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship Tournament, featuring Mississippi State University and the University of Washington. MSU won, and we’re claiming good luck charm status — they shared our hotel!
Saturday kicked off with the business meeting, where PAEA President Bill Kohlhepp offered encouragement and gratitude to the participants for all their hard work.
He also helped with recognition of the four Assessment chairs who are ending their terms this year: (L-R below) John Sheffield, Internal Medicine & Family Medicine Exam Development Board; Theresa Riethle, PACKRAT Exam Development Board; Kim Cavanagh, Assessment Council; [PAEA President Bill Kohlhepp]; and Millie Roach, Women’s Health, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, & Pediatrics Exam Development Board. (If you’re interested, you can apply to replace them until April 5!)
On Sunday, the sprint to the finish was on. The Emergency Medicine & General Surgery Exam Development Board was the first group finished with its work. (These procedural specialists certainly know about efficiency!)
The PACKRAT Exam Development Board was proud to note that they were very thorough in reviewing items for version 22, which will be released in November.
The Internal Medicine & Family Medicine Exam Development Board had an important first this year. This group took on the task of preparing for three forms of the Family Medicine exam, with the version 5 release due in July.
Finally, the Women’s Health, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, & Pediatrics Exam Development Board reviewed the greatest number of items for its three exams — all with smiles on their faces. Unfortunately, they were too busy to take a photo.
All told, the three End of Rotation Exam Development Boards and the PACKRAT Exam Development Board collectively reviewed, debated over, edited, and approved over 1,100 items in preparation for the 2017 exam releases, and the End of Curriculum Exam Development Board kicked off their process of item writing with great energy.
We are extremely grateful for their hard work and look forward to working closely with them in the year ahead.
