A survey of 12 constituencies (totaling 2,288 respondents) concerning the National Board of Medical Examiners' (NBME) comprehensive Part I and Part II examinations revealed support for more even distribution of fail rates across examinations, support for a fixed standard, and favorable reaction to setting standards based on review of examination…

A study compared freshman medical student achievement and satisfaction under two grading schemes: a four-level grading plan (honors, high pass, pass, fail) with two examinations, and pass-fail with weekly quizzes. Under the latter system, students continued to perform well and reported greater satisfaction. (MSE)

This study is the National Board of Medical Examiners exploration of content-based techniques (standard-setting techniques in which pass/fail decisions are based upon the performance of examinees in relation to test content). Two content-based techniques (Angoff and Ebel) and three methods of evaluating examinee performance were studied. (MLW)

A study investigated the clinical preparedness of 144 Stanford University (California) medical school graduates in 11 areas, comparing it with peers from graded medical schools and rating the accuracy of the dean's letter in representing graduates' capabilities. Results indicate that graduates from Stanford's two-interval, pass/fail system…

A discussion of the National Board of Medical Examiners' (NBME) pass-fail grading for Part I and Part II examinations gives background on procedures previously used for setting criterion-based grading standards, gives an overview of research on standard-setting, and outlines NBME plans for determining new standards and incorporating improvements.…