Effective Assessment: Do students learn what we are teaching

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Effective Assessment Do students learn what we
are teaching?
Tricia Munn
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If we wish to discover the truth about an
educational system, we must look into its
assessment procedures.

• What student qualities and achievements are
  actively valued and rewarded by the system?
• How are its purposes and intentions realized?
• To what extent are the hopes and ideals, aims and
  objectives professed by the system ever truly
  perceived, valued and striven for by those who
  make their way within it?
• The answers to such questions are to be found in
  what the system requires students to do in order
  to survive and prosper. The spirit and style of
  student assessment defines the de facto
  curriculum (Rowntree 1977, p.1).

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A graduate of the University of South Australia

• Operates effectively with and upon a body of
  knowledge of sufficient depth to begin
  professional practice
• Is prepared for life-long learning in pursuit of
  personal development and excellence in
  professional practice
• Is an effective problem solver, capable of
  applying logical, critical, and creative thinking
  to a range of problems

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A graduate of the University of South Australia
(cont)

• Can work both autonomously and collaboratively as
  a professional
• Is committed to ethical action and social
  responsibility as a professional and citizen
• Communicates effectively in professional practice
  and as a member of the community
• Demonstrates international perspectives as a
  professional and as a citizen.

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What is an aligned course design?

• Move from a traditional course design whereby
  aims and objectives dictate content which in turn
  dictates assessment to .
• one where aims, objectives and graduate qualities
  dictate assessment with content being developed
  afterwards.

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Purpose of assessment?

• Assessment indicates to students the most
  important points to learn and is the beginning
  place in influencing what students learn and how
  they develop both as students and as
  professionals.
• Boud (1998) believes assessment is to both
  certify (summative) and to prompt learning
  (formative).
• Summative assessment is judgemental and tests
  what the student knows, a final check on what has
  been learned
• formative assessment enhances, supports and
  encourages learning through the feedback of rich,
  detailed and focused information (Wilson 1992).

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Organisations expectations of new graduates

• Superior communication skills
• Strong team orientation (people who enjoy working
  in a team)
• Creative problem solving skills
• Self motivation

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Organisations expectations of new graduates
(cont)

• Superior analytical skills
• Strong character
• Balanced lifestyle (people who can organise their
  lives to include hard work and at the same time
  have a social life. AA is looking for people who
  have already some commitment to the community).
• A solid academic performance.
• Is this part of our teaching and learning?

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How?

• We can only afford potential employees the
  assurance students have attained the Graduate
  Qualities if we can provide verification of their
  development. Assessment is the most observable
  way of doing this.
• If the graduate qualities are demonstrated and
  augmented throughout the aims and objectives of
  the course, the assessment will also reflect and
  be underpinned by them.
• Encouraging deep learning (as opposed to surface
  or strategic).

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How do we do it?

• According to Brown (1996), ensure the
• assessment
• Concentrates on what is learned rather than what
  is taught, with a student-centred rather than a
  tutor-centred focus.
• Allows students in on the process, by allowing
  them all know the rules of the game, particularly
  by the use of transparent, available and
  meaningful criteria, instead of making them play
  the "guess what's in teacher's mind" game.
• Relates closely to the specified learning
  outcomes and assessing the right things, not what
  is easy to assess.

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How (cont)

• Promote lifelong learning, by helping students to
  evaluate their own and their peers achievements
  realistically, not just encouraging them always
  to rely on (tutor) evaluation from on high.
• Encourage divergent outcomes rather than
  convergent ones, so the students have the
  opportunity to demonstrate their individuality
  rather than striving towards a single, correct
  answer. (Brown 1996 p 2)

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What we are doing

• Examine all course outlines to ascertain the
  connection (or lack of) between Grad Quals,
  Objectives and assessment
• Look at the way the course is taught and how this
  impacts upon student learning and assessment.
• A member of the Team will meet with the lecturers
  to discuss how the links might be strengthened.
• Lecturers will also be invited to attend a
  training session which will look more closely at
  strengthening these links.

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Plus

• In addition a grid mapping the Graduate Qualities
  incorporated into each WBSW course over the four
  year degree and will be developed in order for
  the Team to ensure each of the Graduate Qualities
  is covered in sufficient depth with reference to
  Program aims and professional body requirements.
  If it is discovered that a particular Graduate
  Quality is not, changes will be made to rectify
  this.

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We will know we have been successful when

• students have been exposed to new assessments and
  provided feedback on it and
• employers have noticed a difference.

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Discussion Questions

• Do students learn what we are teaching?
• How can we encourage deep learning?