Methods for Assessing Students’ Learning of Histology: A Chronology Over 50 Years!

Over the past 50 years technology has made teaching and learning more interesting and has been a useful tool to motivate students to learn. Students today can learn using computers, iPads and mobile devices to access increasing numbers of educational websites and many eLearning apps. E-learning is now an integral component of most teaching delivery. There have been many innovations utilising both technology-enhanced and interactive learning strategies to revolutionise histology teaching. Now learning resources can be successfully delivered via the Internet, so students can complete all learning outcomes away from the traditional histology classroom environment (i.e. study histology online). The rapid developments in technologies and computer-based learning opportunities coincided with the appearance of Teaching and Learning Centres in Universities promoting teaching practices and supporting more improved learning strategies. This chapter describes how assessments in histology have become an important tool for student learning. A chronological documentation of various assessment opportunities enabled by the increasing use of technology will be described. In particular, assessment packages that engage students and return immediate feedback make histology learning efficient and significantly improve students’ performance on examinations. Assessment strategies described here may be useful for “early career” histology teachers engaging eLearning and/or new teaching departments at new universities embarking on presenting curricula in newly established medical, dental and biomedical/health science programmes. This chapter is also an historical account of at least some assessment practices in histology over the past 50 years. Perhaps similar practices were used to assess student learning in other closely related disciplines such as anatomy including neuroanatomy.