Assessment design and methods

Course teams need to think about the language they use to write assessments, so that students will understand what they have to do. An assessment couched in the language of academic discourse might be appropriate to a final-year degree student, but can be very intimidating to one starting a higher education course. A planned approach to introducing the language of the discipline progressively gives students a better chance of achieving the learning outcomes. Learning support staff are often called upon to deconstruct or interpret assignment briefs because they are not written in language that students can easily understand. This can also happen when the brief is overly long.

Some of the time spent on agreeing an assignment would be usefully spent in reviewing the language as well as the assessment design. A clear, concise style will make students feel comfortable with what is being asked. Straightforward language can still require sophisticated activities.

Setting the level of an assessment is also important and needs to be discussed. Course teams may find it useful to consult the level descriptors of the FHEQ to ensure that the assessment is at the appropriate level and sufficiently challenging (see Section 2.2).

Assessment methods

The list below gives the range of assessment methods identified in QAA subject benchmark statements and by practitioners. It provides a potentially rich, cross-discipline resource from which to identify alternative methods for assessing learning outcomes. With the introduction of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) in 2005, all colleges were required to write and publish a Disability Equality Scheme (DES) by December 2006 (see Section 8.7) to set out how they would ensure that people with disabilities are treated equally (for examples of college statements, see Disability Equality Duty web-sites).

In terms of assessing student work, staff should make sure when designing assessments that all students will be able to tackle them. The following list of assessment methods, added to colleges’ own lists, should enable fair and equal assessment:

Analytical exercises Laboratory practical reports

Briefings Laboratory examinations and practical tests

Case studies Learning journals

Computer-based assessment and exercises Multiple choice testing

Continuous assessment Observation

Coursework with discussion elements Online assessments

Critical diaries, learning logs and journals Optical mark reader assessments

Critiques Oral examinations

Data interpretation exercises Placement or exchange reports

Design tasks Peer and self-evaluation

Dissertation Personal research projects

Documentation Portfolios and sketchbooks

Electronic presentations (CD, web pages etc) Practical reports

Essay assignments Presentations

Examinations (open book) Problem-based learning

Examinations (seen) Projects, independent or group

Examinations (take away) Role play

Exhibition and poster displays Simulation exercises

Extended investigations (e.g. statistical) Student-led seminars, presentations

Fieldwork reports Synoptic examinations

Finding primary source material Video formats

Geological mapping Viva voce examinations

Group work Work-based learning assignments

In-class and module tests Workbooks

Internship diaries Work experience reports

Assessment methods should be appropriate to the learning outcomes, HE level and assessment criteria. Many institutions still require lengthy essays as a matter of course, but these are not always the most effective method of assessing learning. When constructing the programme specification, assessment strategies (along with teaching and learning strategies) should be clearly linked to the learning outcomes (see Section 6). Learning outcomes are not always easy to interpret, and exemplars may be provided to ensure that students ‘get the point’ of what is involved.

Peer assessment

Although the concept of peer assessment has led to some debate, this type of assessment has gradually been introduced in colleges. It is generally agreed that it is good practice to get students to assess their own and others’ work, by devising criteria and making judgements. On the other hand, it can lead to some tensions, especially if the assessment is the result of group work.

Innovative assessment

Colleges frequently use innovative forms of assessment, as the following examples testify; one involves students working in Europe.

Park Lane College

Students re-enact the past at historic houses

Foundation degree Theatre Studies students from Park Lane College (Leeds) entertain visitors at Temple Newsam, Lotherton Hall and Castle Howard by performing historical re-enactments as part of their Fd course.

Drama students researched the histories of the estates to create inventive dramatic re- enactments of the lives of the Meynell Ingram family at Temple Newsam, the Gascoigne family at Lotherton Hall, and the Howard family at Castle Howard.

Each performance inside the houses brings the characters to life, using scripts written by the students and performed in full historic costume. Students studying production arts at the college have provided the hair and make-up designs for the performers. All stages of this activity contribute to the assessment.

Working in Mallorca

The college has worked in Mallorca with Marina Hotels for over 12 years via Leonardo da Vinci funding. This work with FE students has now been developed with the Marina Management team for the college’s foundation degree students.

FE students receive training sessions on animation and bar/restaurant work with Marina in Leeds and then a further two weeks’ training and assessment in Mallorca during March/April each year, when students are selected to return for the summer season. To start the new FdA work placements, a foundation degree student attended the training in Mallorca to familiarise himself with the hotel and work involved, then returned with the FE students for the summer season. Working closely with a range of managers, his role was to supervise the students across 10 hotels on the island, ensuring that they were visited each week, checking logbooks and discussing performance with the bar and restaurant managers or animation chiefs. In addition to this role, the student worked with the customer services managers in the hotels.

South Birmingham College

Press release

HND/C Business and Management students have been challenged to come up with business proposals to help the Digbeth-based Indoor, Outdoor and Rag Markets meet the changing needs of the consumer.

The students will present their proposals to a Dragon’s Den-style panel made up of top bosses from the college, Birmingham City Council and Retail Birmingham.

The winning proposal will be implemented as part of the markets’ business and development plan – giving the winning student an invaluable opportunity to make their mark on both Birmingham City Centre retail and the exciting regeneration of the Digbeth area.

The bespoke six-week project has been integrated into the students’ curriculum and has involved a tour of the markets, a talk from the Markets Retail Manager, Mark

Chamberlain, and essays on marketing the future of the markets and the strategic options.

Article in the Birmingham Mail

Business whizzkids presented their ideas for Birmingham’s historic Bull Ring markets to a Dragon’s Den-style judging panel. The 40 business and management students at South Birmingham College were then grilled by the ‘dragons’, which included two veterans with 85 years of trading between them … Some of their suggestions were to introduce uniforms, Sunday trading and hold street festivals. Robin said, ‘The markets need to attract the next generation. But we’re converts to the markets now.’

Bob Glover, deputy director of business at the college, said this was the first in a series of collaborations between the city council and the college’s business and IT departments. He said, ‘it gives students employable skills and in return the city can get fresh ideas from young people.’

Computer-aided assessment

The term e-assessment has emerged in the last few years to encompass the use of computers to help in adding value to diagnostic, formative and summative testing procedures. Most institutions use randomised banks of multiple-choice questions to test diagnostically or formatively. This is a very efficient method for checking competence and progress.

More recent research points to a deeper and more creative use of computers to improve and enhance the learning experience by using computer-aided assessments in a more imaginative manner. The need for creative assessments has been driven partly by the recorded increase in plagiarism cases, so academic staff are looking for ways to design out the possibilities for plagiarism of assessments. The second driver is the move towards a more student-centred pedagogy whereby students are encouraged to peer assess, work in teams, collaborate and reflect on their learning in an experiential process. The final push comes from the arrival of software that encourages reflection, sharing and collaboration (Web 2.0).

For further information, see: Progression requirements

Students need to know what is required for them to progress from an HND or foundation degree to the second or third year of a degree. They also need to be clear about possible exemptions from professional bodies’ awards.

Progression agreements are a key objective for Lifelong Learning Networks. Each LLN

approaches the development of progression agreements in its own way, but students are at the heart of all models. The widening participation section of the HEFCE web-site contains a good deal of material on progression agreements