Assessment of Genome Education

The provision of genome-related educational outreach is on the increase and is finding receptive and eager audiences in a variety of fields. Assessment tools are needed which go beyond examining participant satisfaction with instructor defined goals to measuring participant defined needs and actual changes in participant knowledge, behavior and attitudes. We will present an assessment model developed for an audience of genetic counselors who attended a one-week course titled, Molecular Diagnostics, Genetic Counseling and the Human Genome Project sponsored by the University of Michigan Human Genome Center in August, 1994. This course was designed for genetic counselors in response to their increasing utilization of DNA-based diagnostic techniques in patient management. The course was attended by 25 individuals and included five days of lectures, discussions, hands-on laboratories and exercises surrounding the technology of DNA-based testing.

The assessment plan was developed around three theoretically based components:

• subjective (participant self-report)
• objective (measurable changes in instructor-defined tasks)
• participatory (participant-defined goals and needs).

This design includes eight distinct assessment activities:

1. a one-page statement identifying why the participant wished to take the course a participant profile describing training and experience
2. a pre-test on knowledge about specific genetic techniques and concepts
3. small group discussions of participant goals, course design and the assessment process
4. a post-test repetition of the pre-test instrument administered at the close of the course
5. small group discussions about the impact of the course on participant knowledge base and practice
6. evaluation of course logistics, speakers, and organization
7. a follow-up assessment administered six months after the course to investigate behavior or performance changes resulting from the course experience.

This poster will use the assessment design and the resulting data to discuss implications for genome-related educational outreach and the field of genetic counseling. In particular, these assessment activities highlighted the isolation in which genetic counselors work as well as their felt need to define practice guidelines regarding DNA-based testing. This assessment also provides insights regarding the process of making links between rapidly developing DNA-based technology and practice-based service to individual families.