Examination of the Validity and Reliability of the Preclinical Endodontics Assessment Rubric by Comparing Student and Academic Staff Scores

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the applicability of a technical assessment rubric used in preclinical endodontic education by clinically experienced students and to investigate its level of agreement with academic staff assessments. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional observational study included forty volunteer fourth-year dental students who had successfully completed their endodontic clinical education. Forty maxillary premolar cases prepared on extracted human teeth during third-year preclinical endodontic education were randomly selected for evaluation. All cases had previously been assessed by academic staff using a structured assessment rubric. The volunteer students independently evaluated anonymized and numbered cases using the same rubric, based solely on their own knowledge and clinical experience. Behavioral competency parameters were excluded from the analysis because they could not be objectively assessed retrospectively. The relationship between student and academic staff technical scores was analyzed using Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses, and group differences were compared using a paired-sample t-test. The level of statistical significance was set at α = 0.05. Results: A statistically significant positive correlation was found between student and academic staff technical scores (r = 0.625; p <0.001). Paired-sample t-test analysis revealed no statistically significant difference between the two groups’ technical scores (p = 0.79). Conclusion: Clinically experienced students are able to apply a preclinical endodontic technical assessment rubric in a manner consistent with academic staff evaluations. These findings support the use of structured rubrics as reliable tools for assessing technical competence in endodontic education.