Reflections on the research process

5.7.1 Students’ voice

As noted earlier, teachers’ and students’ perceptions of effective formative practices are not always in agreement. This observation highlights the value of the students’ voice in helping to enhance the teaching and learning that occurs in classrooms. From a sociocultural perspective the students’ voice is a central component of the community of learners in the classroom. However, too often students are not consulted about educational matters that directly affect them (Vaughan, 2003).

Both the research teachers and the students in this project actively engaged with the research process. The teachers could be characterised as reflective practitioners with a clear interest in improving their current practice. They entered into the research process enthusiastically and maintained a keen interest throughout the year. Similarly, the students in the research project appeared motivated to participate by a genuine desire to enhance the collective knowledge about effective formative use of

185 NCEA systems. It could be argued that, given an understanding of the value of consultation by participants, systems could be set up within the school to allow a collective development of best practice in assessment. Such systems will need to be transparent and respect the rights and responsibilities of both teachers and students. Given the relative success of the use of text messaging in opening up contemporary communication channels, similar technologically such as ‘blogs’ could be used as a consultative device, provided that suitable guidelines and protections were established.

5.7.2 Limitations

It is important to acknowledge the limitations in any research study. Limitations are recognition of the fact that any educational research study is a partial picture of a complex set of interdependent variables. The limitations inherent in using case study methodology have been discussed in chapter 3, however, others are worth mentioning here.

Firstly it should be recognised that this research investigated students’ perceptions of their experiences. The interpretivist stance adopted in this research acknowledges that multiple views of reality exist. As such, the students’ perceptions are their interpretation and recollections of their assessment experiences, and these may differ from interpretations made by their teachers or the researcher. However, as identified above, research must be cognisant of the lived experiences of all participants in the teaching and learning process. Knowledge of students’ perspectives provides an opportunity to examine the impact of teachers’ assessment practices on students, and to determine whether the actual impact was what was intended. To help contextualise the students’ perspectives, classroom observations and an interview with the teacher were also conducted.

Secondly, the self selected research students were not representative of all ability levels (see Appendix L). How closely such a sample represents the wider cohort is often debated. Although the self selecting students were moderate to high achievers, the AEQ confirmed the existence of a close relationship between the sample students and the wider Y12 Trad Maths cohort. It is recognised, however, that the perceptions

186 of the research students reported in this project may not be representative of all students in this cohort.

Lastly, recognition is also made of the relatively small size, and subject specificity, of the research sample. Investigating nine students within one subject area at one school limits the generalisable nature of the findings of this particular study to a wide range of educational settings. However, as argued by Stake (1995) the nature of generalisation is that it refers to the learning process through which we individually acquire concepts and information and steadily generalise them to other situations. It is through careful replication of case studies over time, that ‘petite’ generalisations are expanded into ‘grandes’ generalisations (Stake).

Accordingly, it is not meant to imply that the perceptions reported here are necessarily representative of all Y12 mathematics students throughout New Zealand. Rather the perceptions reported here are indicative of the range of possible perceptions and further investigation will be required in order to more fully appreciate the complex nature of students’ involvement in formative assessment practices. Additionally the fluid nature of education systems in general, and New Zealand’s senior secondary school assessment system in particular, means that any research is a snapshot within a dynamic system. Multiple research projects over time may serve to illustrate and map the changes, tensions and directions of a necessarily complex, multi-faceted system.

Any extended period of research is also subjected to the development of perceptions amongst the research students. To a certain extent many of these perceptions will develop naturally over time as students’ experience base expands. However, involvement in the research project may also have caused an increased reflection on the inter-relationship between aspects of students’ learning. Since this project examined students’ perceptions of formative assessment practices they are exposed to, it is reasonable to expect that students will increasingly examine how they currently use assessment information, and how these practices may be improved. Accordingly, it is recognised that students’ perceptions are socially, culturally and historically situated.

187

5.7.3 Implications for further study.

This research project has investigated students’ perceptions of the formative potential of NCEA. It has provided some insights in to how students and teachers use a high- stakes assessment system, designed primarily for summative purposes, for their own formative ends. In recognising that the current research has only investigated a small part of a larger concern, a number of suggestions for future research can be made.

This research proposed perspectives on two aspects of conceptions of assessment within sociocultural theories of learning that are underdeveloped. Firstly, the role that feedback plays in generating collaborative learning opportunities, and secondly, collective development of knowledge of effective formative assessment practices is socially and contextually situated. Futher research into pedagogies that help develop and support effective collaborative formative assessment practices should be conducted.

Given the historically under-represented nature of the students’ voice, further research should be cognisant of the important role that students play in developing inclusive and effective practices within communities of learners. Given the importance placed on the situated nature of cognition within this current project, it is suggested that case study is an appropriate methodology for future research. A valuable addition to the data gathering methods could be to include student diaries as a way of gathering students’ reflections of their assessment experiences.

A number of other suggested areas for future research can be made. Firstly, research on the effective use of ‘I can do’ sheets as a way of helping students learn about the assessment criteria that they are working towards, and how to use ‘I can do’ as effective self- and peer-assessment tools is warranted. Secondly, research on the structured use of activities designed to encourage collaborative use of formative feedback would enhance the sociocultural perspective on assessment in communities of practice. Lastly, research could also investigate the most effective methods of combining oral and written feedback on assessment tasks.

188 The current research also suggested that differences in the way schools implement NCEA will result in a range of potential impacts on teachers’ pedagogy and students’ learning. Accordingly, ongoing research into the integration and impact of formative assessment practices in senior classrooms will need to be undertakne. In particular, concerns were raised over the potential impact of over-assessment on students’ learning and achievement, especially higher achieving students who are often left to try and master the more difficult material with limited teacher assistance. Research should be undertaken into the relative merits of valuing higher number of credits over higher grades.