Proposed Criteria for Assessment of Student Learning when Introducing New Manual Skills into the Entry-Level Physical Therapist Education Program

Physical therapy educators are responsible for ensuring that learners demonstrate sufficient skill acquisition for safe and effective clinical practice, which includes the learners’ ability to execute manual skills in a reliable and accurate manner. This study is the first attempt to assist physical therapy educators in assessing the feasibility of including new manual skills in the educational curriculum by using criteria for assessment of student learning. An example using these criteria is illustrated by a pilot experiment using the Vertical Compression Test (VCT) and Saliba Postural Classification System (SPCS), which are currently taught predominantly at the post-graduate level. Physical therapy students (SPT) were trained in the VCT and SPCS during the first year of the educational curriculum. Six SPTs and two experienced clinicians (PT) participated in the experiment. An SPT and a PT applied the VCT to subjects in their normal resting posture (PPre) and in a corrected posture (PCor). Data collection measured quantity of force, duration of application, subjects' sway, SPT/PT interpretation of test results, and students’ confidence in order to determine feasibility of inclusion. There were no differences in quantified manual compression forces with a significant correlation between SPT and PT. Movements of the center of pressure indicated test subjects stood steadier during VCT performed by PT compared to SPT, but not to a clinically significant degree. Interpretation of VCT and SPCS test results was excluded as a focus of this study due to curricular limitations that influenced the study design. Student feedback indicated satisfaction with the learning experience. The use of the proposed criteria for assessment of student learning confirmed feasibility of inclusion of the VCT in the entry-level physical therapy education curriculum. First-year DPT students demonstrated ability to perform the VCT with appropriate technique after minimal training.