Evaluation of structural oral viva examination as an assessment tool in the subject of periodontology

Background To assess students’ knowledge, the assessment of students in dentistry has always remained a controversial topic. Student evaluations are crucial for two reasons: first, they help produce dental graduates of the highest caliber to satisfy societal demands; second, they give input to those involved in dentistry education policymaking. Aim Hence, this study was planned to introduce a new structured method of viva examination to evaluate its effectiveness over the traditional method. Materials and Methods Sixty students from IV BDS were selected randomly. These students were subjected to traditional and oral structured viva examinations (OSVEs) in periodontics and implantology. After obtaining informed consent for the study, an MCQ examination was conducted for all participants on the basics and etiopathogenesis of periodontology, and their scores were noted. Group A – 30 participants appeared for a traditional viva examination (TVE) of basic periodontics. Group B – participants appeared for OSVE on etiopathogenesis. Later the crossover was done for two regions in such a way that Group A - 30 participants appeared for OSVE of basic and Group B - TVE on etiopathogenesis. OSVE was conducted with the help of question cards. Both forms of viva examination had a set time limit of 5 min per student. Results The performance scores of TVE and OSVE were compared which showed high significance (P < 0.001). Performance scores were also compared, and their MCQ correlation was done with the TVE score. Conclusions Observation from the present study showed that TVE can be improved as an effective assessment tool.