1. CHEP Annual Conference:
Student Engagement
24th January 2013
Theme: - Student Engagement: a
catalyst for transformative change
Tim McLernon
Title: Congruent assessment and feedback that satisfies
educators and students in higher education.
AN HEA SUPPORTED PROJECT
Faculty of Art Design & Built Environment
School of the Built Environment,
University of Ulster

2. Assessment shapes Learning…

3. AIM
• The aim of this study
is…

4. The Study will explore…
• Underlying hypothesis… • too much formal
assessment and
feedback.
• A thesis that…
• more informal
assessment and
feedback would
enhance learning.

5. National Student Survey
• Students influencing policy?!
• Are the questions valid for the student
discourse

6. Extraneous uses of assessment
• KIS
• WIS
–League Tables
»Choosing a University
• etc

7. University

8. OUTPUT
• From findings

9. FIVE KEY QUESTIONS:
1. What is assessment for?
2. How much?
3. What sort?
4. When?
5. What constitutes
feedback?

10. METHODOLOGY 1
• Literature Review –

11. METHODOLOGY 1
• Literature Review – • Two different discourses
some initial findings. used by academics and
students respectively
• Academics concerned
with understanding
feedback. Students not
concerned with
understanding
feedback.

12. METHODOLOGY 2
• Focus groups with • How they study
students • What study activities
• Focus on assessment
• What feedback
• What they do with
feedback
• What they recognise as
feedback
• etc

13. METHODOLOGY 3
• Semi-structured • How do you learn?
interviews with • Do you learn from
students assessment?
• How do you prepare for
assesment?
• How do you know what
to do?
• Do you consider
previous feedback?
• Etc.

14. YEAR GROUPS
Blah! Blah! Blah!

15. Samples of assessment activities
• Explored • Exam papers
• Coursework & Briefs
• Assessment criteria
• Evaluated
• Marking Schemes

16. EVALUATING EXAMINATIONS
• Exam Questions ask • Student Answers
students to: consist of:
• - Discuss • - Bullet point answers
• - Explain • - Facts only
• - Compare • - Little discourse
• - Describe • - Careless grammar
• - Contrast • - Careless punctuation
• - Evaluate

17. TUTORS
More Blah! Blah! Blah!

18. DISCIPLINES
• The organisation of • Patterns of student
universities is based
around disciplines.
activity span a
continuum from the
• The main social HEAVILY DIDACTIC
framework of universities (eg Law and
is discipline based. Medicine) to
PARTICIPATIVE (eg
• HOW MUCH attention do the Creative Arts)
we pay to the pedagogy
of discipline. • Do you agree?

19. Clustering of Academic Task Areas in Three Dimensions
(From Biglan 1973 – Law added by this author)
Task Area Hard Soft
Nonlife System Life System Nonlife System Life System
Astronomy Botany English Anthropology
Pure Chemistry Entomology History Political Science
Geology Microbiology Philosophy Psychology
Math Physiology Communications Sociology
Physics Zoology
Ceramic Agronomy Accounting Educational
Engineering Dairy Science Finance Administration and
Applied Civil Engineering Horticulture Economics Supervision
Computer Science Agricultural Law? Secondary and
Mechanical Economics Continuing Education
Engineering Special Education
Vocational and
Technical Education.
4 intellectual clusters: HP SP HA SA