Beyond what we expect: The basics and pedagogical implications of test-enhanced learning in contemporary medical education

Since ages, the word ‘testing’ is equated or irreversibly used for assessment purposes and mostly confined to measuring the amount of knowledge gained by the students in the stipulated period of curriculum or assessment of whether students perform up to a satisfactory level. However, recent literature (1, 2) suggests that testing has implicit pedagogical benefits which extends beyond the preamble of assessment. The ability of testing to promote learning and help in long-term retention of related information is referred as “test- enhanced learning” (1). As a practical example, students tend to retrieve and recall the questions which have been asked in their grade examinations better than the knowledge which haven’t been questioned. Unfortunately, owing to the undue emphasis on high-stakes judgment oriented summative assessments, other critical pedagogical aspects related to testing are often ignored.