Usinggoodfeedbackandassessmentpracticestoenhance

studentengagementandachievement

UtrechtuniversityScienceFaculty15March2017SallyBrown

PFHEA,SFSEDA,NTFEmeritaProfessor, LeedsBeckettUniversity

VisitingProfessor:UniversityofPlymouth,LiverpoolJohnMooresUniversityandUniversityofSouthWales.

Rationale

Inthisworkshop,wewillexplorethefivekeyfactorsthatneedtobetakenintoaccountwhendesigningeffectiveassessmentwhichfostersstudentengagementandlearning:purpose(why?),'focus(what?) methodologies& approaches (how?),agency(who?) andtiming(when?).Bytheendoftheworkshop, participants willhavehadopportunities to considerhowaconcertedandholisticapproach toassessmentcanhelpittoconstructively alignto learning outcomesandprogramme delivery,sothatstudents valuetheprocess rather thanjust focusingontheresultantmarks,aswellastoidentifysomeactionsthatcouldbetakentoenhanceassessmentpractice.

Evaluatingprogrammes,

strengthsandareasforimprovement

Consideringdeliverymodes:face-to-face,

online,PBL,blended…

Determiningandreviewingsubjectmaterial:currency,relevance,level

Designingfitforpurposeassessment

methodsandapproaches

Enhancingquality,seekingcontinuous

improvement

Designingandrefininglearning

outcomes

Assuringquality,matchingHEI,

nationalandPSRBrequirements

Thinkingthroughstudentsupport

CurriculumDesign

Essentials

Whyisassessmentsuchabigissue?

l Goodfeedbackandassessmentpracticesareessentialtostudent learning;

l Globally,student satisfactionsurveysfrequentlyhighlightsignificantdissatisfactionaroundtheseissues;

l Intoughtimes,staffoftenfindthepressureofachievingfastandformativefeedbackaheavychore,especiallywhencohortsarelarge;

l Akeylocusforengagementisassessment,sinceassignmentsgivestudents cuesaboutwhatwevalue,andtheytendtoregardmarkslikemoney.

From‘Amarkedimprovement’(HEA,2012)

Assessmentofstudent learningisafundamental functionofhighereducation. Itisthemeansbywhichweassureandexpressacademicstandards andhasavitalimpactonstudentbehaviour, stafftime,universityreputations,leaguetablesand,mostofall,students’ futurelives.TheNationalStudentSurvey,despiteitslimitations,hasmademorevisiblewhatresearchersinthefieldhaveknownformanyyears:assessmentinouruniversitiesisfarfromperfect.(p.7)

Improvingassessmentimproveslearning

Assessmentislargelydependent uponprofessionaljudgement,andconfidenceinsuchjudgement requirestheestablishment ofappropriate forumsforthedevelopmentandsharingofstandardswithinandbetweendisciplinaryandprofessionalcommunities.Assessmentshapeswhatstudentsstudy,whentheystudy,howmuchworktheydoandtheapproach theytaketotheirlearning.Consequently,assessmentdesignisinfluentialindeterminingthequalityandamountoflearningachievedbystudents,andifwewishtoimprovestudent learning,improvingassessmentshouldbeourstartingpoint.(p.9)

Formativeandsummativeassessment

l Formativeassessmentisprimarilyconcernedwithfeedbackaimedatprompting improvement, isoftencontinuous andusually involveswords.

l Summativeassessmentisconcernedwithmakingevaluativejudgments, isoftenendpointandinvolvesnumbers.

Weneedmoreformative,lesssummative

Thechange thathasthegreatestpotentialtoimprovestudent learningisashiftinthebalanceofsummativeandformativeassessment.Summativeassessmenthasimportantpurposesinselection,certificationandinstitutionalaccountability, butitsdominancehasdistortedthepotentialofassessmenttopromotelearning(assessmentforlearning).(p.9)

Boudetal2010:‘Assessment2020’Assessmenthasmosteffectwhen...:1. Itisusedtoengagestudentsinlearningthatisproductive.2. Feedback isusedtoactivelyimprovestudent learning.3. Studentsandteachersbecomeresponsiblepartnersinlearning

andassessment.4. Studentsareinducted intotheassessmentpracticesandcultures

ofhighereducation.5. Assessmentforlearningisplacedatthecentreofsubjectand

programdesign.6. Assessmentforlearningisafocusforstaffandinstitutional

development.7. Assessmentprovides inclusiveandtrustworthyrepresentationof

studentachievement.

Emphasises authentic & complex

assessment tasks

Develops students’ abilities to

evaluate own progress, direct

own learning

Is rich in informal feedback (e.g. peer

review of draft writing,

collaborative project work)

Is rich in formal feedback (e.g. tutor comment, self-review

logs)

Offers extensive ‘low stakes’

confidence building opportunities and

practice

Uses high stakes summative assessment

rigorously but sparingly

AssessmentforLearning

‘Impactonlearning’

Assessmentisacentralfeatureofteachingand thecurriculum. Itpowerfullyframeshowstudents learnandwhatstudentsachieve.Itisoneofthemostsignificantinfluencesonstudents’experienceofhighereducationandallthattheygainfromit.Thereasonforanexplicitfocusonimprovingassessmentpracticeisthehugeimpact ithasonthequalityoflearning.(BoudandAssociates,2010,p.1)

Assessmentliteracy:studentsdobetteriftheycan:l Makesenseofkeytermssuchascriteria,weightings,and

level;l Encounteravarietyofassessmentmethods(e.g.

presentations,portfolios,posters,assessedwebparticipation, practicals,vivasetc)andgetpracticeinusingthem;

l Bestrategicintheirbehaviours,puttingmoreworkintoaspectsofanassignmentwithhighweightings,interrogatingcriteriatofindoutwhatisreallyrequiredandsoon;

l GainclarityonhowtheassessmentregulationsworkintheirHEI,including issuesconcerningsubmission,resubmission,passmarks,condonement etc.

Arethinkisneeded

Universitiesfacesubstantial change inarapidlyevolvingglobalcontext.Thechallengesofmeetingnewexpectations aboutacademicstandards inthenextdecadeandbeyondmeanthatassessmentwillneedtoberethoughtandrenewed.(Boudetal,2010p.1).

Howcanweengagestudentsthroughassessment?

Myfit-for-purposemodelofassessment:thekeyquestions

l Whyareweassessing?(Purpose)l Whatisitweareactuallyassessing?(Focus)l Howareweassessing?(Methodologiesandapproaches);

l Whoisbestplacedtoassess?(Agency);l Whenshouldweassess?(Timing).

Purposes:thereasonsforassessment:mayinclude:

l Enablingstudents togetthemeasureoftheirachievement;

l Helpingthemconsolidatetheirlearning;l Providingfeedbacksotheycanimproveand

remedyanydeficiencies;l motivatingstudents toengageintheirlearning;l providingthemwithopportunities torelate

theoryandpractice.

morepurposes...l Helpingstudentsmakesensiblechoicesaboutoption

alternativesanddirectionsforfurtherstudy;l demonstrating studentemployability;l providingassuranceoffitnesstopractice;l givingfeedback toteachersoneffectiveness;l providingstatisticsforinternalandexternalagencies.

Orientation/focus:choosingwhatweassess

l productorprocess?l theoryorpractice?l knowledge,skillsandattitude(allsectors)?l subjectknowledgeorapplication?l whatwe’vealwaysassessed?l whatit’seasytoassess?

How:methodsandapproachesofassessment

l Weneedtochooseauthenticandappropriatemeansofassessing;

l Unseenexams,reportsandessaysareoverusedandtherearemanymoremethods inuseindifferentuniversitiesintheUKandinternationally whichmaybemorefit-for-purpose;

l Theseinclude in-seminarassessments,posters,assessedblogs,portfolios, casestudies,vivas,shortanswertests,multiplechoiceandotherCAAtests,reflectiveaccounts,logs,projects,presentations, learningpackages, annotatedbibliographies, in-trayexercises,livebriefs,andmanymore.

Agency:choosingwhoisbestplacedtoassess

l tutorassessmentl self-assessmentl peerassessment,(eitherinterorintrapeer)l employers,practicetutorsandlinemanagersl clientassessment

When:timingiscrucial

l Ifallassessment islefttotheendoftheprogrammeortheendofmodule, thereisahighriskoffailureandunder-performance;

l Incrementalactivitiesleadingtoaculminative/ capstoneassignmentormultiplesmallassignments canhelptoavoid‘suddendeath’;

l Weshould aimtoavoidassessingstudentsonlywhenitfitsoursystemsand insteadstrivetoassessstudentsastheybecomeready.

Designingfitforpurposeassessmentmethods&approaches:10questions1. Areyourassignmentsfullyandconstructively alignedwith

yourlearningoutcomes?2. DotheycomplywithUU’srequirementsintermsof

number,wordlimitsetc?3. Aresummativeassessmentsundertakenthroughout the

course,oriseverything‘suddendeath’end-point?4. Isthereexcessivebunching ofassignments indifferent

modulesthatishighlystressfulforstudentsandunmanageable staff?

5. Arethereplentyofopportunities forformativeassessment,especiallyearlyon?

Andthenextfive:6. Arestudentsover-assessed?7. Dostaffhavetimetomarktheassessments intimefor

examboardsetc?8. Whenyouhaveintroduced innovativeassignments, have

theybeenintroduced insteadofexistingonesorsimplyaddedtotheassessmentdiet?

9. Arestudentsencouraged tomakegooduseofthefeedbacktheyreceive?

10. Dothestudentsperceiveyourassessmentdiettobefairandprovidingmeaningful recognitionoftheirachievements?

Goodfeedback:

1. Isdialogic,ratherthanmono-directional,givingstudentschances torespondtocommentsfromtheirmarkersandseekclarificationwherenecessary.

2. Helpsclarifywhatgoodworklookslike,sostudentsarereallyclearaboutgoals,criteriaandexpectedstandards, andprovidesopportunities toclosethegapbetweencurrentanddesiredperformance.

afterBrown,S.(2015),Assessment, learningandteachinginhighereducation:globalperspectives,Palgrave

Goodfeedback:

3. Activelyfacilitatesstudents reviewingtheirownworkandreflectingonit,sothat theybecomegoodjudgesofthequalityoftheirownwork.

4. Doesn’tjustcorrecterrorsandindicateproblems,potentiallyleavingstudentsdiscouragedanddemotivated,butalsohighlightsgoodworkandencouragesthemtobelievetheycanimproveandsucceed.

Goodfeedback:

5. Delivershigh-quality informationtostudentsabouttheirachievements todateandhowtheycanimprovetheirfuturework.Wherethereareerrors,studentsshouldbeabletoseewhatneedstobedonetoremediatethem,andwheretheyareundershooting intermsofachievement, theyshouldbeabletoperceivehowtomaketheirworkevenbetter.

Goodfeedback:

6. Offers‘feed-forward’aimingto‘increasethevalueoffeedbacktothestudents byfocusingcommentsnotonlyonthepastandpresent…butalsoonthefuture– whatthestudentmightaimtodo,ordodifferentlyinthenextassignmentorassessmentiftheyaretocontinue todowellortodobetter’(Hounsell,2008,p.5).

7. Ensuresthatthemarkisn’ttheonlythingthatstudentstakenoteofwhenworkisreturned,butthat theyareencouraged toreadandusetheadvicegiveninfeedbackandapplyittofutureassignments.

Sadler,themostcitedauthoronformativeassessmentargues:

“Studentsneedtobeexposedto,andgainexperienceinmakingjudgementsabout,avarietyofworksofdifferentquality...Theyneedplanned ratherthanrandomexposuretoexemplars,andexperienceinmakingjudgementsaboutquality.Theyneedtocreateverbalisedrationalesandaccountsofhowvariousworkscouldhavebeendonebetter.Finally,theyneedtoengageinevaluativeconversationswithteachersandotherstudents.”

Fivethingsstudentsreallyhateaboutfeedback

1. Poorlywrittencommentsthatarenighonimpossibletodecode,especiallywhenimpenetrableacronymsorabbreviationsareused,orwherehandwriting isinanunfamiliaralphabet andisillegible.

2. Cursoryandderogatoryremarksthatleavethemfeelingdemoralised‘Weakargument’, ‘Shoddywork’,‘Hopeless’,‘Under-developed’,andsoon.

3. Valuejudgementsonthemaspeopleratherthanontheworkinhand.

Fivethingsstudentsreallyhateaboutfeedback

4. Vaguecommentswhichgivefewhintsonhowtoimproveorremediateerrors:‘OKasfarasitgoes’,‘Needsgreaterdepthofargument’, ‘Inappropriatemethodologyused’,‘Notwrittenattherightlevel’.

5. Feedback thatarrivessolatethat therearenoopportunities toput intopracticeanyguidancesuggestedintimeforthesubmissionofthenextassignment.

Encouragingstudentstousethefeedbackweprovideforthem

l Deliveryoffeedbackshouldnotbelefttochance, soitsbesttoavoidaskingstudentstopickupmarkedhardcopyassignmentsfromdepartmental offices;

l Electronicsubmission ofassignmentshasbenefitsanddisadvantages butonbalancetheformeroutweighthelatter;

l Perhapsrequirestudentstoguestimate expectedmarkshavingreadyourfeedbackearlyintheirprogrammes;

l ‘Assignment handler’candeliverfeedbackelectronically andonlyreleasemarksoncestudentshaveresponded;

l Audiofilesofaudio feedbackcanbehighlysuccessful inenablingstudentstocapture‘live’oralfeedback,andcanreplacewrittenfeedback(e.g.JISCprojectSoundsgood).

Makingassessmentworkwelll Intra-tutor andInter-tutor reliabilityneedtobeassured;l Practicesandprocessesneedtobetransparently fairtoall

students;l Cheatandplagiarisersneedtobedeterred/punished;l Assessmentneedstobemanageable forbothstaffand

students;l Assignmentsshouldassesswhathasbeentaught/learned

notwhat itiseasytoassess.

Assessmentfor learning1. Tasksshouldbechallenging,demandinghigherorderlearningand

integrationofknowledgelearnedinboththeuniversityandothercontexts;

2. Learningandassessmentshouldbeintegrated,assessmentshouldnotcomeattheendoflearningbutshouldbepartofthelearningprocess;

3. Studentsareinvolvedinselfassessmentandreflectionontheirlearning, theyareinvolvedinjudgingperformance;

4. Assessmentshouldencouragemetacognition, promoting thinkingaboutthelearningprocessnotjustthelearningoutcomes;

5. Assessmentshouldhaveaformativefunction,providing ‘feedforward’forfuturelearningwhichcanbeactedupon.Thereisopportunity andasafecontextforstudents toexposeproblemswiththeirstudyandgethelp;thereshouldbeanopportunity fordialogueaboutstudents’ work;

Assessmentfor learning6. Assessmentexpectationsshouldbemadevisible tostudentsasfaras

possible;7. Tasksshouldinvolvetheactiveengagementofstudentsdeveloping

thecapacitytofindthingsoutforthemselvesandlearnindependently;8. Tasksshouldbeauthentic;worthwhile, relevantandofferingstudents

somelevelofcontrolovertheirwork;9. Tasksarefitforpurposeandalignwithimportant learningoutcomes;10. Assessmentshouldbeusedtoevaluateteachingaswellasstudent

learning.(BloxhamandBoyd)

Puttingthisintopractice.Weneedto:

l designapurposefulandrationalisedassessmentstrategythat involvesadiverserangeofmethodsofassessment,thatmakesbestuseofarangeofassessorsandistimelyinitsexecution;

l considerwhendesigningassessmenttaskshowanystudentsmightbedisadvantaged;

l maximisetheopportunities foreachstudent toachieveatthehighestpossiblelevel;

l ensuretheassuranceofappropriatestandards forallstudents.

Theseandotherslideswillbeavailableonmywebsiteathttp://sally-brown.net

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