Assessment of midwifery programmes
These standards and requirements set out the educational standards and requirements for the assessment strategy for undergraduate midwife registration programmes.
Assessment process
Assessment of learning is a continual process and demonstrates a balanced and integrated distribution throughout the educational programme.
- Assessments are strategically planned and function to:
- Provide feedback on student progress including identifying strengths and areas for further development.
- Help the student to identify their individual learning needs.
- Ensure that theoretical and clinical educational standards are achieved before progressing to the next level of the programme.
- Assessments are based on a variety of strategies that are aligned with the subject area, clinical practice setting, stage of the educational programme and expected learning outcomes.
- Assessment measures the integration and application of theory to the care of women and their babies learned throughout the programme, and require the student to demonstrate competence within practice through the achievement of learning outcomes in both theory and practice.
- Assessment strategies are established as reliable and valid measurements of learning outcomes.
- Criteria indicating the standard for a pass award is declared and made explicit for theoretical and clinical practice assessments.
- Assessments have clear marking criteria and processes which are open and transparent, and are available to students, internal and external examiners and academic staff.
- The assessment strategy does not allow for compensation between theoretical and clinical practice assessments.
- Regulations relating to compensation, supplemental assessments, appeal mechanisms and conditions for continuance on the programme are explicit and made known to students and key stakeholders.
- A mechanism exists whereby records are maintained that demonstrate that each student meets the declared standards of learning outcomes in clinical and theoretical components, and is eligible for registration with NMBI as a midwife.
- Eligibility to register with NMBI is based on completion of the programme, meeting the learning outcomes of the programme, and achieving competence in the minimum practice requirements.