Evaluating the Performance of the Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education in Physical Therapist Education: Determining Appropriate Criteria and Assessors

Journal of Physical Therapy Education, Fall 2006 by Buccieri, Kathleen M, Brown, Renee

Background and Purpose. The role of the academic coordinator of clinical education (ACCE)/director of clinical education (DCE) in physical therapist education programs is evolving as physical therapy moves to a doctoring profession. Faculty evaluation of the ACCE on traditional academic criteria does not capture all of the responsibilities of the ACCE. Teaching occurs in individualized instructional sessions, making it difficult to obtain student feedback of teaching performance on course evaluations that assume a more typical classroom format of teaching. Administrative activities are not represented on course evaluation forms. The purpose of this study was to determine relevant criteria and identify appropriate individuals to contribute to the faculty evaluation of the ACCE.

Subjects. The ACCEs and DCEs from all accredited physical therapist education programs in the United States were surveyed.

Methods. An anonymous questionnaire was developed using institutional promotion criteria, traditional course evaluation forms, and published roles of the ACCE. Content validity was established. The percent responses were rank ordered to determine the importance of items in the categories of administration, teaching, scholarship, and service. Data obtained regarding individuals qualified to contribute input on performance were reported.

Results. The response rate was 63%. The items rated the most valuable were in the category of teaching, followed by administration, service, and scholarship. Academic administrators, faculty, center coordinators of clinical education, clinical instructors, and students were identified as qualified to provide input on various items in evaluation of the ACCE.

Discussion and Conclusion. Results are valuable in designing a comprehensive faculty evaluation of the ACCE for the purposes of promotion, tenure, and career satisfaction. The information will be useful in designing appropriate evaluation criteria for formative and substantive feedback to ACCEs.

Key Words: Faculty evaluation, Academic coordinator of clinical education, Physical therapist education, Promotion and tenure.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Accredited professional (entry-level) physical therapist education programs in the United States include both academic and clinical coursework. Clinical education coursework occurs at health care facilities, schools, and wellness programs providing physical therapist (PT) students opportunities to apply learned academic knowledge with the supervision and guidance of a licensed physical therapist. Specific objectives for the experiences are set and collaboratively monitored by the clinical instructors (CIs) and the academic program. These experiences are required by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE)1 and are defined in A Normative Model of Physical Therapist Professional Education: Version 2004(2) as "an integral component of the entire curriculum to prepare students to enter the profession of physical therapy." These courses provide students opportunities to apply theory and didactic information learned in the classroom and laboratory to patient care and are facilitated, coordinated, and monitored by the academic coordinator of clinical education (ACCE) or director of clinical education (DCE) employed by the academic program. For simplicity purposes in this paper the term ACCE will be used to be inclusive of the DCE terminology. In its Model Description Position for ACCEs/DCEs, revised in 2002,3 the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) defines the position as follows:

The ACCE/DCE holds a faculty (academic or clinical) appointment and has administrative, academic, service, and scholarship responsibilities consistent with the mission and philosophy of the academic program. This individual demonstrates competence in clinical education, teaching, and curriculum development. In addition, the ACCE's/ DCE's primary responsibilities are to plan, coordinate, facilitate, administer, and monitor activities on behalf of the academic program and in coordination with academic and clinical faculty.

The ACCE that holds a faculty appointment at his or her academic institution should have effectiveness in all aspects of the position evaluated by that institution. Traditional faculty evaluations include a compilation of evidence of effectiveness in the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service. Student and peer reviews of classroom teaching, academic administrator annual evaluations, a record of publication, and documented involvement in institutional or community service provide evidence of a faculty member's effectiveness and accomplishments towards promotion and/or tenure. Although the faculty workload of some ACCEs includes teaching in traditional courses, the diverse responsibilities of the ACCE described above are not captured using traditional faculty evaluation methods and constitute a significant portion of the individual's workload. For example, the Model Description describes an expectation that the ACCE "communicate and oversee communication with Center Coordinators of Clinical Education (CCCEs), Clinical Instructors (CIs), and students to monitor progress and assess student performance. [The ACCE] provides guidance and support as required to problem solve and discuss pertinent issues with student(s), CIs, and/or CCCEs."3 These activities are not usually captured on faculty evaluation forms and are not directly observed by academic administrators or other faculty members, making it difficult to provide feedback on traditional faculty and peer evaluations. Individualized teaching occurs in clinical settings or individual office appointments with the ACCE, clinical education faculty, and the student, while course evaluation formats request input on the professor's presentation style, use of audiovisual materials, and style of classroom management. No evaluation tools were identified in the literature to gather data on the effectiveness of the ACCE in roles that are directed towards individual students, clinics, or the administration and coordination of clinical education. The purpose of this study was to identify specific criteria for and individuals qualified to provide input towards a comprehensive faculty evaluation of the ACCE in physical therapist education programs.