1. Strategic Issues in Assessment and Feedback. Why did I get 37%? Professor Brenda Smith University of Bath Innovations in Learning & Teaching week 25 th February 2009 University of Bath Innovations in Learning & Teaching week 25 th February 2009

2. Key aims are to... Emphasise assessment for learning rather than of learning Encourage the active engagement of students in the whole process of assessment and feedback To encourage feedback as feed-forward

3. Key Issues with assessment?  Students are often not given the ‘Big Picture’ - students want an ‘e-bay’ experience  Too much summative and not enough formative  Students are not actively involved in the whole process  Insufficient feedback that comes too late  Myths and traditions that inhibit change

4. Key Issues with assessment?  Limited assessment methods  Assessed work bunched towards the end of a semester  Unclear or no specific criteria  Variations in practice  Feedback rather than feed-forward The whole assessment process needs clear and effective leadership and management

5. The different levels…….. National Institutional Departmental

6. The Burgess Report A case for change Present system cannot capture achievement in some key areas of interest to students and employers Emphasis on the top two degree classes wrongly reinforces an impression that a Lower Second or Third Class Degree is not an achievement Institutional methods for calculating the degree classification could be clearer National

7. The Burgess Report. A case for change  A summative system – is at odds with lifelong learning  There is a need for greater emphasis on additional information that is currently contained in the European Diploma Supplement and academic transcript (an official record of a learner’s programme of study, grades achieved and credit gained)  Institutional practices – complex and inconsistent

8. Inconsistency of classification assessment regulations  (SACWG) surveyed 35 HEIs  25 used percentage marks; eight used grades; and two used both percentages and grades  18 institutions aggregated or averaged percentage marks to arrive at the honours degree classification; 4 used a ‘profiling’ approach; and 13 used both or either SACWG: Student Assessment and Classification Working GroupStudent Assessment and Classification Working Group

9. Inconsistency of classification assessment regulations Variations in degree classification can be caused by:  Differing institutions’ award algorithms  ‘Dropping’ a number of modules when calculating the degree classification  A shift towards course work and away from formal examinations  Institutions diverged on their approaches to borderline performances  Variations in the weightings given to the penultimate and final years of full-time study

10. Relative weightings given to results at Levels 2 and 3 Ratio, Level 3:level 2Frequency 4:11 3:14 70:303 2:14 3:22 4:31 1:15 Ref: SACWG and Mantz Yorke et al

11. A single index of performance, whether it is a grade-point average or an honours degree classification, tells nothing on its own about the trajectory of a student’s development. It does not differentiate between the student who progresses steadily over the course of a programme and the student who starts slowly but in the final year produces work of an outstanding standard Issues involving student trajectory

12. Do you know what is happening across Bath University in terms of assessment? Institutional

13. University of Hertfordshire

15. Aerospace, automotive & Design Allied Health Professions Art & Design Human Resources and Strategy

16. Assessment methods can affect the type and usefulness of the feedback given

21.  For reflection and updating, especially if done in partnership with students  Exploration of alternative approaches to assessment  To ensure a degree of consistency in assessment procedures across the department  To establish the priorities of assessment within the department Departmental Advantages of a Departmental Assessment strategy?

22. Conditions for innovation & enhancement Effective leadership of learning, teaching & assessment Departments that value teaching Workloads that are not too high Perceived recognition & rewards for staff Developments that are implemented in a student focused way A culture that listens to students and values their feedback Tutors that get to know their students personally

23. Skills & Knowledge Timing Criteria Feedback Methods

24. What skills do you want to develop in your students?  Communication  Team Work  Self reflection  Ability to give feedback to others  Critical & creative thinkers  Independent workers

25. Assignments and the learning opportunity they offer Communicate information & ideas in other than the written word Become more adept at writing in different forms, formats & ‘genres’ To understand the benefits & challenges of working collaboratively

26. Assignments and the learning opportunity they offer Communicate information & ideas in other than the written word Become more adept at writing in different forms, formats & ‘genres’ To understand the benefits & challenges of working collaboratively Seminar, poster, video, video conferencing or other multimedia Design or proposals; book reviews; case report/ studies; web pages; journal articles Group problem solving; joint book reviews; team presentations; role plays; group exhibition

27. Group Work  Working effectively with groups  Planning for group work  Establishing groups  Scheduling group work  Training and guidance  Managing the group process  Assessing group work  Evaluation and review – reflecting on the quality of the group work www.heacademy.ac.uk/supportingwww.heacademy.ac.uk/supporting learning/assessment

28. Assessing Group Work  They need to know the basis on which they are being assessed  They need practice on how to satisfy & apply the criteria  Jointly planned criteria or a mix?  Should group work always carry a mark?  Self, peer or tutor assessment?  Team mark + individual contribution  Group process + end product?  Peer feedback

29. Methods of Assessment  Essay, essay plan, journal article, book review, exhibition, poster, video, case study, In-tray exercise, dissertation, podcast, radio broadcast, lab report, fieldwork report  Exam – unseen, seen, open, take home  Portfolio, reflective journal, individual or group presentation, web design, MCQs, Spreadsheets, project plan, case report, questionnaire, draft and review

30. Timing of Assessments? Student Diaries University of Bath

31. Criteria Who should set the criteria? Could students write the criteria? Could student rewrite the criteria in their own words? Do we always give feedback against these criteria? Do we have:  Generic grade criteria?  Subject specific criteria?  Assignment specific criteria?

32. How do we give feedback to help students learn?

33. All I get is a grade next to my matriculation number without any indication on how I am actually doing

34. They use riddles… it can be cryptic

35. I got an essay back where the only comment was ‘use a bigger text size’, there was nothing on how to improve my grade

36. For a rather lengthy scientific report, the feedback I received consisted of a mere two ticks and a question mark

37. I have never received feedback for any of my exams and this means I don’t know how to improve for the third year when the marks really count

38. Students want more feedback. The also want more verbal and face-to-face feedback. What can we stop doing to enable this to happen? Why did I get 37% ?

39. Questions.....? Is written feedback always typed? Could feedback be spread out throughout the year? Do staff encourage the use of self and peer feedback? Is feedback given in different ways e.g. MP3, Audacity etc Are students actively encouraged to use feedback?

40. Evaluation of Tutor feedback omission Use of English Ask for clarification Error Give clarification Praise Encouragement Feed forward -ive 30% 20% 17% 11.5% 10.5% 3.1% 1.5% 0% 0% OU/SHU Improving the Effectiveness of Formative Assessment in Science

41. Students comments They are not very specific when they mark. I got “some good evaluation”, what does that mean? You put so much effort into this work that you really want feedback and to know they have read it properly. If you just get a mark you think, “I’ve worked for days and that’s it?” I think it would be helpful as well if when we had our feedback we could relate it to the assessment criteria

42. When I get to sit down with my tutor and discuss my work – that’s probably the best form of feedback I can get

43. Get students confident with assessing Give students in groups a selection of essays - Excellent, Good, Average & Fail Students decide individually which essay fits into which category and then compares notes in small groups Then get students to tease out the differences & express these differences as criteria Students then provide feedback on each piece of work in their groups Students then provide guidelines for effective essay writing What has each student/group learned?

44. Get students actively involved In small groups get students to exchange an assessed piece of their work and compare the feedback comments with group members Do they understand the comments? How would they respond to the comments? What would they do differently next time if: a) They re-did the same assignment b) Applied the learning to a new and different piece of work?

45. Quick ways of giving feedback Generic feedback within 24 hours on the VLE Face-to-face feedback with the whole group or small groups Peer feedback in groups Use technology - Audacity, Dragon, Statement Banks Self-feedback - help students develop the skills of self reflection Student want more face-to-face feedback – what can we stop doing to enable this to happen?

46. Understanding...? This report is not logically structured This essay is not sufficiently analytical We need to develop the skills of self- assessment & encourage students to be active in this process

47. Involve the students StudentStaff These are areas of my work which I think are good Please comment on the following areas What I want to improve or do differently next time The mark I think it deserves is

48. REf. Race, P (2007), Adapted from ‘How to Get a Good Degree: 2 nd edition’, London: Open University Press

51. Dialogue Starters... How did this essay make you think differently? Which of your references gave you the best information? Which part of the assignment do you feel less confident about? What was the most challenging part of this assignment? Jot down 2 things you have learnt doing this assignment that you did not expect to learn? What advice would you give to students doing this assignment? If you were to do this assignment again, what one change would you make?

52. Seven principles of good feedback practice 1. Facilitates the development of self-assessment (reflection) in learning 2. Encourages teacher and peer dialogue around learning 3. Helps clarify what good performance is (goals, criteria, standards expected) 4. Provides opportunities to close the gap between current and desired performance (SENLEF Project)

53. Seven principles of good feedback practice 5. Delivers high quality information to students about their learning 6. Encourages positive motivational beliefs and self-esteem 7. Provides information to teachers that can be used to help shape the teaching Ref: Juwah, Macfarlane-Dick, Matthew, Nicol, Ross & Smith (2004)

54. Any Questions? Professor Brenda Smith Brendasmith47@googlemail.com

55. To continue the discussion and share your reflections on what you have learnt from the session go to the Innovations Week online blogInnovations Week online blog