How do we know that new teaching methods are effective? Evaluation of a practice-based curriculum for Master of Public Health Students

Rigorous and independent evaluations are consistently employed to understand the process and impact of federal, state, and local public health programs.  The evaluations are used to inform research and practice to ensure implementation of high-quality programs that are effective in reaching their intended goals.  This same approach should apply to teaching especially with novel approaches such as practice-based teaching.  In academia, the traditional method of evaluating a course includes student evaluations and sometimes peer observations.  More rigorous evaluations of curricula using various data collection methods are needed to ensure high-quality teaching that prepares students for careers, fosters faculty development, and, where applicable, results in community partnerships.  An intervention planning and communication course at Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) was restructured to utilize practice-based learning; students create deliverables for a local public health agency based on the agency’s priority areas.  Using a pre- and post-test design, the course is being externally evaluated to determine the effectiveness of this approach in meeting the course objectives.  Guided by a logic model and evaluation plan, the evaluation assesses short-term goals (i.e., course learning objectives, quality of deliverables) and long-term goals (i.e., quality of collaboration, career opportunities for students, faculty development, agency implementation of deliverables).  Various data collection strategies include surveys of the students and agency, key stakeholder interviews and focus groups, in-class observations of faculty, and document review of course assignments and activities.  The results of the evaluation will be used to inform changes in the curriculum and collaborations with the community.