Negative Wash-Back of Formative Assessment to Learning in Saudi Higher Education Context

This article reports the wash-back of formative assessment on what students learn, how they learn and the depth of their learning in Saudi higher education context. Previous research indicates that assessment methods affect different aspects of learning either positively or negatively depending on the nature of assessment tasks. Observations indicate a clear association between Saudi students’ learning and how their learning is assessed; so this research was needed to determine how exactly the correlation looked like—positive or negative. The data in this study were collected from Saudi undergraduates by employing a student survey and semi-structured interviews. The survey included Likert scale items of agreement regarding research assignments, quizzes and midterm examinations administered to 250 English-major students. To validate the survey results, sixteen students from different levels with GPA 3 and above were interviewed. The results showed that formative assessment narrowed down the scope of learning materials. The students mostly adopted surface level learning strategies to prepare for formative assessment tasks. Higher order thinking skills were not tested in any of the formative assessment methods. Therefore, it is suggested that assessments tasks should be subjected to thorough validation and moderation. Sound assessment practices should be put in place and practiced judiciously. To achieve these objectives, sustained institutional and departmental professional backing is a prerequisite.

Prevalence of Positive Depression Screen Among Post Miscarriage Women at the Aga Khan University Hospital

Introduction: Miscarriages are a common pregnancy complication affecting about 10-15% of pregnancies. Miscarriages may be associated with a myriad psychiatric morbidity at various timelines after the event. Depression has been shown to affect about 10-20% of all women following a miscarriage. However, no data exists in the local setting informing on the prevalence of post-miscarriage depression. Objective: To determine the prevalence of positive depression screen among post-miscarriage women at the Aga Khan University hospital, Nairobi. Methods: The study was cross-sectional in design. Patients who had a miscarriage were recruited at the post-miscarriage clinic review at the gynecology clinics at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi. The Edinburgh postnatal depression scale was used to screen for depression in the patients. Prevalence was calculated from the percentage of patients achieving the cut –off score of 13 over the total number of patients. Secondary analysis was done using Univariate and multivariate analysis to compare clinical variables between the screen - positive and screen - negative women in order to delineate the potential pattern of association between the two among the study subjects. Results: A total of 182 patients were recruited for the study. The prevalence of positive depression screen was 34.1% since 62 of the 182 patients had a positive depression screen. Univariate analysis revealed that education level (p=0.039) and mode of conception (p=0.005) impacted on the outcome of the depression screen. In multivariate analysis, multiple factors impacted on the depression screen and these included: age (p=0.009), education level (p=0.001), gestation at miscarriage (p=0.04), marital status (p=0.043), prior miscarriage (p=0.011) and mode of conception (p=0.03). Moreover, of the patients who had a positive depression screen, 21(33.1%) had thoughts of self-harm. Conclusion: A positive depression screen is present in 34.1% of women in our population 2 weeks after a miscarriage. More so, factors that seem to impact on the positive depression screen include a younger age, a lower education level, an older gestational age at miscarriage, being single, an assisted mode of conception and a prior miscarriage. Thoughts of self-harm are present in about a third of these women (33.1%) hence pointing out the importance of screening these women using the EPDS after a miscarriage.