Use of script concordance tests to facilitate development of clinical reasoning in orthodontic teaching for undergraduate dental students

Script Concordance Tests (SCTs) are written authentic clinical scenarios in which students have to interpret data to make decisions. Students are presented with clinical vignettes with incomplete data. More data is then presented, for example, certain types of radiographs. This information is then explored to consider if a particular clinical diagnosis is more or less likely, then if and what further clinical information is required to reach a diagnosis. There is always a degree of uncertainty, SCTs do not focus solely on the “correct answer” but rather how clinical data will be used to confirm or deny a clinical hypothesis. As there is not a single “correct answer” student reasoning is compared to that of an expert in the field. The aim of this project is to develop a series of SCTs for undergraduate 4th and 5th dental students in orthodontics, around common clinical and multidisciplinary scenarios. The SCTs will be available throughout both years and students will be regularly signposted to cycle through them.