The Use of the Nominal Group Technique Consensus Development

Method for the Evaluation of Learning, Teaching & Assessment

Heather Gray ProfD MSc FHEABrenda Bain MPhil FHEA

Sivaramkumar Shanmugam PhD MSc FHEA

Nominal Group Technique (NGT)

Consensus development method (Van de Ven & Delbecq, 1972)

Facilitates groups in ideas generation, decision-making & priority setting

Competences required of physiotherapy students during

first-year placements (Steward, 2001)

Occupational health nurses’ perceptions of their education &

training needs (Bamford & Warder, 2001)

Factors affecting quality & capacity in clinical education in radiography

(Williams et al, 2006)

Evaluation of a special study module in literature & medicine

(Lancaster et al, 2002)

Evaluation of the teaching & assessment of mental health nurses’

inter-personal skills (Perry & Linsley, 2006)

Learners’ perceptions of a medical education course’s strengths and

weaknesses(Dobbie et al, 2004)

NGT Examples in Healthcare Education

Sample NGT Questions from Physiotherapy

What were the most beneficial aspects of the Vocational Rehabilitation module?

What issues do international students on the MSc Physiotherapy programme have with written coursework feedback?

How could your self-directed learning be improved in the Neurorehabilitation module?

Stages of NGT Group Meeting

1. Private generation of

responses

2. Master list compilation

3. Item clarification

4. Merging of similar items

5. Silent private ranking of top

5 items

6. Ranked results shared with the group

Benefits of NGT for ParticipantsPrevents dominant

members controlling

Ensures relatively equal

participation

Increases group

productivity

Mitigates status of group members

Protects participants’

views

Benefits of NGT for Group FacilitatorSuperior to

focus groups

Prioritised list

generated

Immediate results

available

Results can be compared to other groups

Qualitative & quantitative

results

Cost effective

Most Beneficial Aspects of Vocational Rehabilitation Module

Rank Position

Topic Median Rank

1 Coverage of the Systems Approach 4.0

2 How to carry out a workplace assessment (theory) 3.5

3 Conducting a real-life workplace assessment & presenting findings 3.0

4 Provision of workbook 3.0

5 Role play of work-focussed interview 2.0

Issues with Written Assessment Feedback for International MSc Students

Rank Position

Topic Median Rank

1 Lack of clarity of feedback provided 5.0

2 Late timing of feedback 4.03 Confusion regarding coursework presentation 2.04 Lack of clarity in assignment instructions 1.0

Suggestions for Improving Self-Directed Learning in Neurorehabilitation Module

Rank Position

Topic Median Rank

1 To provide a framework for analysing video-clips 4.5

2 To provide answers for video-clip case studies 4.0

3 Access to PowerPoint slides prior to classes 2.5

4 To make directed reading more specific 2.0

5 Provide access to tutorial PowerPoint slides immediately after class 1.0

My Top 5 Reasons for Using NGT

1. User guides available

2. Time efficient

3. Solutions focussed4. Transparent results5. Students & staff like it!

Bedtime Reading

Delbecq, A. 1975. Group techniques for program planning: a guide to nominal group and Delphi processes. Glenview Ill., Scott Foresman.

Dunham, R.B. 1998, Nominal group technique: A users' guide [online]. Available at: http://www.peoplemix.com/documents/general/ngt.pdf

Fox, W.M. 1993, "The improved nominal group technique (INGT)", Journal of Management Development, Vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 20-27.

Varga-Atkins , V., Bunyan, N., Fewtrell, R., McIsaac, J. 2011 The NGT– a practical guide for Facilitators, Liverpool University. Available at: http://www.slideshare.net/tundeva/the-nominal-group-technique-a-practical-guide-for-facilitators

The Use of the Nominal Group Technique Consensus Development

Method for the Evaluation of Learning, Teaching & Assessment

Heather Gray ProfD MSc FHEABrenda Bain MPhil FHEA

Sivaramkumar Shanmugam PhD MSc FHEA