Assessment for learning in and beyond courses: A consultation

David Boud

University of Technology, Sydney

20 November 2008

Overview

• What is the program?

• The main idea

• The website

What is the program?

• ALTC Senior Fellowship

• Changing assessment practices

• Emphasis on long term learning

• Influencing decision-makers

The main idea

• Change in our conception of assessment!

• Assessment is for building the capacity of students to be informed judges of their own learning (and that of others) after the course

Implications of the idea

• Assessment is subordinated to learning

• It is about building the reflexive learner

• Each assessment event is an opportunity to build capacity to be an effective learner beyond graduation

The website: Assessment Futures• Elements of assessment practices to

contribute to long term learning• Assistance in the design of assessment• Link with examples (mainly located

elsewhere)• It takes a point of view: it is not a general

purpose website on for assessment for learning

Elements of assessment practices

Main categories:1. Active engagement2. Giving and receiving feedback3. Modelling and practice4. Working with peers5. ‘Authentic’ and investigative activities6. Becoming aware of learning and judgement7. Integrative activities8. Designing assessments

1. Active engagement

1.1. Class engagement

1.2. Early involvement and early practice

1.3. Judging samples of the work of others

1.4. Identifying and developing standards and criteria

2. Giving and receiving feedback

2.1. Peer feedback

2.2. Student influenced feedback from tutors (or others)

2.3. Calibrating judgements against others or against standards

2.4. ‘Publicly’ rehearsing arguments before a judge

3. Modelling and practice

3.1. Use of model answers or worked examples

3.2. Opportunities to practise working with the material involved in any given module

3.3 Developing an assignment in stages

3.4. Identifying when further practice is needed

4. Working with peers

4.1. Peer coaching

4.2. Creating guidelines/advice for others

4.3. Group assessment

4.4. Group self-assessments

4.5. Tasks requiring involvement of others

4.6. Team/group work on defining and solving problems

5. ‘Authentic’ and investigative activities

5.1. Undertaking authentic tasks

5.2. Authentic modes of presentation

5.3. Projects and research-oriented investigations

5.4. Learning agreements

6. Becoming aware of learning and judgement

6.1. Task selection6.2. Self-testing and the utilisation of results6.3. Confidence marking6.4. Withholding marks until specific comments

have been considered6.5. Promoting reflection/reflexivity/meta-learning6.6. Reviewing what is and is not known6.7. Re-presenting achievements or outcomes in

different forms

7. Integrative activities

7.1. Integrative tasks7.2. Integrating assessment over single unit or

module7.3. Integrating assessment across units or over

time7.4. A capstone activity7.5. Patchwork text assessment7.6. Assessments linked to generic attributes/key

skills/program outcomes7.7. Learning portfolios/learning journals

8. Designing assessments

8.1. Students create assessment rubrics.

8.2. Students create their own tests.

8.3. Students design the course

What is missing?What are good examples?Where should we look?What else is needed on such a website?What would your expectations be of such a resource?