Assessment and Feedback at a distance

1. Assessment and Feedbackat a distance Jenny Lorimer Javiera Atenas Helen Barefoot

2. Aim and Learning Outcomes • Aim • The aim of the workshop is to consider ways of assessing and providing feedback online • Learning outcomes: • By the end of the session participants will: • be familiar with online assessment methods such as wikis and blogs • have considered the benefits and challenges associated with audio/video feedback • be familiar with the University system for online submission and marking

3. Assessment for Learning Good assessment for learning … …Engages students with assessment criteria …Supports personalised learning …Focuses on student development …Ensures feedback leads to improvement …Stimulates dialogue …Considers staff and student effort

4. Online submission Benefits? Challenges?

5. Online submission

6. Online submission • New online system http://www.studynet.herts.ac.uk/go/assignmenthelp Setting up new system

7. Marking tools: • Tablet PC • Track Changes • Bamboo pad

8. Quality Assurance considerations Section 2: Collaborative provision and flexible and distributed learning (including e-learning) - Amplified version (2010) B7 Students should have access to: • information on the ways in which their achievements will be judged, and the relative weighting of units, modules or elements of the programme in respect of assessment overall; • timely formative assessment on their academic performance to provide a basis for individual constructive feedback and guidance, and to illustrate the awarding institution's expectations for summative assessment.

9. Quality Assurance considerations B8: The awarding institution, whether or not working through a programme presenter or support provider, should ensure that students can be confident that: • their assessed work is properly attributed to them, particularly in cases where the assessment is conducted through remote methods that might be vulnerable to interception or other interference • those with responsibility for assessment are capable of confirming that a student's assessed work is the original work of that student only, particularly in cases where the assessment is conducted through remote methods; • any mechanisms, such as web-based methods or correspondence, for the transfer of their work directly to assessors, are secure and reliable, and that there is a means of proving or confirming the safe receipt of their work.

10. Examples: • Law Distance learning course: Virtual flash meeting – 1 participant presents and 2 participants have to give feedback • Engineering Face to face Masters course: students submit video presentations • Computer Science Distance learning course: questionmark perception for online testing

11. Online assessments • Written assignments • Summative assessments – http://www.questionmark.com/uk/perception/index.aspx • Podcasts/videocasts • Regular reflection – blog? • Group work – wikis? Group poster? http://www.studynet2.herts.ac.uk/crs/09/1LFS00290909.nsf/MarkAssignmentsv2?OpenAgent&docid=65117CDB6E69FB29802576CD007A6B50

12. Digital feedback • Audio or video • Same principles apply • Method of promoting active engagement • Emotional involvement - importance of language used (Higgins, Hartley & Skelton, 2002) • Judgements felt personally

13. Activity • Work in pairs • One person to draw a Christmas card • One person to give feedback – audio or video • Upload the file • Time allowed; 20 minutes

14. Online feedback Benefits? Challenges?

15. Students’ perceptions • Anthony Herbland and Kirsten Rennie (HEP) • Used at both PG and UG

16. Using wiki’s • A wiki3 is a webpage or set of webpages that can be easily edited by anyone who is allowed access (Ebersbachet al., 2006). • Collaborative tool that facilitates the production of a group work • Easy-to-use online editing tool to change or even delete the contents of • the page in question.

17. Wiki’s in practice • Principles & Practice of Sport Science (70 students) • Re-thinking traditional assessment • Used studynet wiki

18. Advantages Concerns Group ground rules Random groups may cause problems Use as a formative task before summative • On line • No paper • Transparent – postings with name & date • ‘real world’ • Increased amount of quality feedback

19. Assessing the wiki (CPAD3) The content of the Wiki clearly follows the remit of the task to excellent effect and a conclusion is reached Criticality of the topic is demonstrated to excellent effect An excellently structured discussion that reads coherently as a whole • The content of the Wiki shows little evidence of following the remit of the task and no conclusion is reached • No/very limited criticality of topic is demonstrated • Discussion consists of random unlinked • ideas that do not form a coherent whole

20. Assessing individual contributions • Has made a reasonable contribution to each week’s activity. • Has shown reasonable engagement with the contributions of others each week. • Has added a reasonable amount of new information each week.

21. Using Blogs • Refers to a simple webpage consisting of brief paragraphs of opinion, information, personal diary entries, or links, called posts, arranged chronologically with the most recent first, in the style of an online journal Most blogs also allow visitors to add a comment below a blog entry.

22. Blogs in Practice • Collaboration and reflection • Detailed self-assessment • Provide important guidance, as well as clear guidelines • An useful feedback tool

23. References • Benkler Y (2006) The Wealth of Networks: how social production transforms markets and freedom. Yale University Press: USA. • Cych L (2006) Social Networks. In: Emerging Technologies for Education, BECTA (ed.). BectaICT Research: Coventry, UK. • Ebersbach A Glaser M Heigl R (2006) Wiki: Web Collaboration. Springer-Verlag: Germany. • Higgins, R Hartley, P and Skelton A (2002) ‘The conscientios consumer: reconsidering the role of assessment feedback in student learning’ Studies in Higher Education 27(1) 53-64 • Stvilia B Twidale MB Gasser L Smith L C (2005) Information quality discussions in Wikipedia.