Developing assessment in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Developing assessment in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Prof. Sue Bloxham S.bloxham@cumbria.ac.uk

Workshop outcomes Provide participants with an opportunity to: • Explore the validity of assessment methods in use; • Consider how assessment can be used to foster high quality student learning • improve the engagement of students and support the achievement of a diverse student body; • Adopt a programme-level approach to assessment planning • Apply the workshop material to their own assessment planning

Workshop structure • Valid assessment – alignment with programme learning outcomes/ aims for a 21st century education • Learning orientated assessment • Taking a programme approach • Assessment and the transition to higher education for diverse students • Programme level planning and application of workshop ideas

Valid assessment – (QAA) • the range and types of assessments used measure appropriately students‘ achievement of the knowledge, skills and understanding identified as intended learning outcomes. It is important that each assessment enables students to demonstrate the extent to which they meet the intended learning outcomes in respect of both the subject and any generic skills.* • Is your assessment FIT FOR PURPOSE? * QAA Quality Code (2013)

Dimensions of Knowledge • Factual: facts a student needs to be familiar with; • Conceptual: knowledge such as knowledge of classifications, principles, theories, models and structures; • Procedural: knowing how to do something including techniques, skills and methods of enquiry, • Metacognitive: knowledge of self and cognitive tasks and methods of learning and organising ideas (from Anderson, 2003:29)

21st Century higher education • Skills for the ‘knowledge economy’* • Critical thinking and problem-solving • Collaboration across networks and leading by influence • Agility and adaptability • Initiative and entrepreneurialism • Effective oral and written communication • Accessing and analysing information • Curiosity and imagination * ‘Must have’ skills for the future to tackle the ‘Global achievement gap’ (Wagner, 2008) Do these attributes figure in Programme/ unit outcomes and do assessment tasks foster and test these broader skills and capacities?

A 21st Century education?: The USEM account of employability S Skills including key skills E Employability, citizenship, life, etc Personal qualities, including self-theories and efficacy beliefs Meta-cognition Subject under-standing M Yorke & Knight 2004 U

Discussion Working with colleagues in your own or a cognate discipline • Have a discussion about your existing assessment methods and identify the challenges for achieving really valid assessment of 21st century learning outcomes • Describe the challenge you face with this and write it down Write an objective for developing the assessment in your programme

Purposes of assessment • Certification (of learning) • Quality Assurance (of) • Encourage effective learning (for) • Encourage life long learning (sustainable assessment) (as)

The unbalanced purposes of assessment Assessment for and as learning Certification & QA

Characteristics of learning-oriented assessment • Formative • Demands higher order learning • Learning and assessment are integrated • Students are involved in assessment • It promotes thinking about the learning process; • Assessment expectations should be made clear; • Involves active engagement of students, developing independent learning; • Tasks should be authentic and involve choice ; • Tasks align with important learning outcomes • Assessment should be used to evaluate teaching.

Unseen exams • They often come at the end of a course; • They are not integrated into the learning; • The criteria are oblique, • They rarely result in useful feedback, • They do not encourage retention of learning, • They struggle to encourage or assess higher level learning: application, analysis, evaluation • Neither teacher nor student knows if their learning is on track until after the course has ended. Exams: ‘The silent killer of learning’ – Mazur.

Essays have the potential to meet many characteristics but: • Often no formative element – you and the students may not be aware of weaknesses until too late • Questions may ask students to ‘evaluate’ or ‘critically assess’ a topicbut if students can pass adequately by regurgitating others’ evaluation or criticism (from lectures or reading), they may avoid higher order learning. • Students not involved in assessment or thinking about learning • Rarely authentic • Criteria often oblique

Enquiry-based example: social science • Introduced to lecturer’s research • Exploring signs of childhood • Photos posted on line – annotated by self and others • 2 visits to museum, gallery, library to collect other images • Round table conference facilitated by more experienced students • Submit summative research report Sambell, (2010).

includes formative stages, students can get help and feedback in a low stakes way Expectations available to students both in written criteria and embedded in feedback Potential to integrate learning from university with learning from other contexts Enquiry-based assessment: benefits • integrated with the learning • encourages independent and active learning • involves students in the assessment process (avoiding grades in the early stages) • higher order skills, complexity • authenticity, choice

Patchwork text: example from English • Aim to improve students’ reading, critical thinking and writing about tragedy in drama • Provisional and exploratory patch writing weekly, e.g: 500 words: any Greek element you find ‘alien’/ fascinatingly strange 500 word pen portrait of a character you sympathise with/ feel for/ understand • Patches peer reviewed and discussed in class • final assignment: a piece of critical-reflective writing which ‘stitches together’ - reflects on and records the processes of coming to a critical understanding of the field – (used as the basis for revision for final exam?) • In most cases, patches are submitted as an appendix to the final piece. Parker, 2003

Teacher education: embedding formative assessment in a portfolio • First year students, assessment 4000 word portfolio; • Professional Development Activity (PDA) after each taught session; • the PDAs were used in various ways: • peer reviewing; • collating • applying research to a case or problem • sharing of work. • Summative assignment 1500 words • eight PDAs as appendices referenced in the text. • Favourable student evaluation • Higher marks, better engagment Georgia Prescott, Cumbria

Patchwork textsee Winter et al (2003) for more detail • Assessment is integrated with learning • Integrates formative and summative assessment • Student involvement in assessment • Complex task requiring higher order and critical thinking • Independent, autonomous learning • Reflection and focus on learning process • May offer greater writing opportunities to diverse students

Psychology Redesign • 560 students in groups of 6-7; • 3 week cycle culminating in 700-800 word essay e.g.’Assess the strengths and weaknesses of Freud’s and Eysenck’s theories of personality. Are the theories incompatible? • Guidance provided for tackling the question and working in a group; • Best definitions & essays posted on VLE as feedback; • Students used familiar language to discuss academic concepts – Dialogue and explanation. Nicol 2009

Regular group assignments • Promotes sense of belonging and retention • Students learn through explanation and peer support • Regular formative feedback • Engagement throughout course • Learning and assessment integrated

Some other assessment methods • Writing tasks: newspaper articles, press releases, executive summaries, information sheets (authentic tasks). • Video about a specific topic – Youtube? (developing new skills) • Research Grant applications (lots of learning, less marking) • Lay commentary on specialist material, e.g. journal article (being able to explain things to non specialists – demonstrate understanding) • Poster – (presenting information clearly & concisely) • Presentation – ‘explanation’ as learning • Real problems and case study analysis (problem solving) • Reflective Journals, Diaries & learning logs (thinking about learning) • Wikipedia entry (explaining accurately to non-specialists)

Benefits to students of moving to in-class, on-line, ongoing assessment and feedback • Immediate feedback • More feedback • Assessment & teaching/learning are integrated • Students involved in assessment – gaining better understanding of standards and own performance • Potential for greater student engagement throughout modules • More independent study • integration with work experience • Raise expectations regarding study workload Quicker, cheaper and low stakes

Discussion In your teams • Consider the extent to which existing assessment (summative and formative) is learning oriented • Describe the challenge you face with this and write it down Write an objective for developing the assessment in your programme

Major problems in ‘programme’ assessment • Not assessing programme outcomes. • Courses too short for complex learning - atomisationof assessment • Separation of assessment and the educational process • Students and staff failing to see the links between courses on their programme. • Surface learning and ‘tick-box’ mentality. • Over-standardisation in assessment regulations. • Too much summative – not enough formative. Adapted from: Programme Assessment Strategies PASS: http://www.pass.brad.ac.uk/workshop.php

Programme assessment ideas • Accumulative projects. • Capstone course, eg fashion show. • Portfolio/E-portfolio PASS project http://www.pass.brad.ac.uk/workshop.php

Capstone module: Investigating Professions in the Social Sciences • Students research a professional field they are interested in – make a short presentation to class (formative); • Compile a CV, mock application (for a real job) and covering letter (20% -Careers service help assess this) • Write an assignment: Consider the ways in which social science has been used to shape practice in the professional area: 80%

Programme – employability link • It requires students to bring together learning from across their programme – both knowledge and skills; • Students are encouraged to recognise practical skills and knowledge transfer as part of their studies. • It uses the assessment to ensure that students develop skills relevant to employability such as accessing career resources and researching careers – vital for students on non-vocational programmes • It ensures that students are prepared for recruitment activities, e.g. compiling CVs and tackling applications Slight & Bloxham (2005) Embedding personal development planning into the social sciences LATISS

Programme assessment:Coventry Business Management • Each year will have a unifying theme, focussing on a different sector exemplified by a local employer with a global reach or brand – 1st Year Cadburys/Kraft, 2nd Year Jaguar, 3rd Year Barclays. • Second semester of each year, 50% assessment will be through a large integrative task, which will be designed to assess learning from all three modules. • 50% of each module will be independently assessed, but other 50% will come from the assessment of the integrated task against different criteria appropriate to each module’s different learning outcomes.

Assessment to support transition for diverse students • Ensure plenty of formative assessment opportunity • Help students understand ‘the rules of the game’ • Resist the temptation to ‘spoon-feed’ students • Help students develop academic and library skills, giving them plenty of opportunity for practice and feedback • Capitalise on the potential of students to help one another

Discussion In your teams • Consider the extent to which existing assessment is focused on programme outcomes • Consider what challenges are posed by the increasingly diverse student body • Describe the challenges you face with this and write them down Write an objective for developing the assessment in your programme

Task 1 (10 mins) • Working in your teams, • Look at the challenges that you have discussed this morning Select one, maximum two, of the challenges. Create an objective in tackling this challenge. Write the objective on your sheet. Planning Concrete action Setting Objectives Identifying Priorities Envisioning a strategy Be prepared to share your objective/s in the large group

Task 2: Read the front of the cards (10 minutes) • Look only, for now, on the √ side of each card with the titles on. Read the principles on the front of the cards, choosing those that are appropriate to address your objective/s.

Task 3: Map selected cards to the timeline (15 minutes) ‘Storyboard’ your plans, mapping selected cards to the learner timeline (e.g. at induction phase, during first few weeks, mid-semester). You can place the same cards in more than one position on the timeline

Task 4: Read Examples on the back of cards (15 minutes) turn the cards over to display relevant examples and implementation ideas on the back of the cards

Task 5: Choose relevant examples(15 minutes) select any examples that would fit/support your objective If time is short, only turn over the most important selected cards

Task 6: Review ideas and write plan (15 minutes) discuss and elaborate on your plans across the timeline Use the blank implementation cards for extra ideas Review your plans Agree on and record any final reflections and action points to take forward

Conclusion Developing assessment can help: • Balance the different purposes of assessment; • Make assessment more valid for a 21st century curriculum; • Encourage and reward student engagement; • Ensure that students’ study efforts are directed towards meaningful, programme level, learning; • Support the retention and achievement of diverse learners;

References Anderson, L.W. (2003) Classroom Assessment: Enhancing the Quality of Teacher Decision Making. Mahwah, N.J. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Bloxham, S (2014) Assessing assessment (case study by Georgia Prescott), in H. Fry et al (Eds) A handbook for teaching and learning in higher education (4th Edn) London: Routledge. Nicol, D (2009) Assessment for learner self-regulation: enhancing achievement in the first year using learning technologies Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, Vol. 34, No. 3, June 2009, 335–352 Sambell, K (2010) Enquiry-based learning and formative assessment environments: student perspectives, Practitioner Research in Higher Education, Vol 4, No 1 (2010), p52-61 Parker. J (2003) The Patchwork text in Greek tragedy. Innovations in Education & Teaching International ,, Vol. 40 Issue 2, p180, 14p, QAA (2013) The Quality Code, Chapter B6 http://www.qaa.ac.uk/publications/information-and-guidance/uk-quality-code-for-higher-education-chapter-b6-assessment-of-students-and-the-recognition-of-prior-learning1#.Vid-GuRwb4g Wagner, T. (2008) The Global Achievement Gap: Why Even Our Best Schools Don’t Teach The New Survival Skills Our Children Need—And What We Can We Do About It Basic Books. Winter, R., J Parker, and P Ovens (Eds.): The Patchwork Text: A Radical Re-assessment of Coursework Assignments, a ‘Special Issue’ of Innovations in Education and Teaching International, Vol. 30, No.2, May 2003. Yorke, M. & Knight, P. (2004) Embedding employability into the curriculum. Higher Education Academy

General texts on assessment design • Bloxham, S & Boyd, P (2007) Developing assessment in Higher Education: a practical guide, Maidenhead, Open University Press (course reader).. • Bryan, C. & Clegg, K (2006) Innovative assessment in Higher Education. London: Routledge. • Merry, S., Price, M., Carless, D & Tara, M. (2013) Reconceptualising Feedback in Higher Education. London: Routledge. • Price, M., Rust, C., O’Donovan, B & Handley, K (2012) Asssessment Literacy: The foundation for improving student learning. Cambridge: ASKE. • Sambell, K., McDowell, L & Montgomery, C (2013) Assessment for Learning in Higher Education, London: Routledge

Developing assessment in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences