Self Assessment Dialogue: added value

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Self Assessment Dialogueadded value?

• Sara Eastburn
• Head of Division of Rehabilitation
• University of Huddersfield
• UK
• s.eastburn_at_hud.ac.uk

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Aim

• To introduce the pedagogical principles and
  educational practicalities of a Self Assessment
  Dialogue Document (SADD)
• To present research findings
• To foster critical thinking amongst delegates in
  consideration of the usefulness of a SADD within
  their own educational arena
• To encourage critical debate around the research
  methodologies used

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Literature

• Assessment is integral to the learning process of
  an individual
• Assessment procedures must be well informed and
  fit-for-purpose (Brown, 1999 4)
• Assessment is one of the key drivers to optimise
  student learning (Race, 2005)
• Involving students in the assessment process
  deepens the students learning experience and
  develops a greater reflective insight (Race, 2001)

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Literature

• Assessment-driven higher education culture
• Learners need to be able to manage their own
  learning
• Self-assessment
• Making a judgement of their work
• Improvements for the future
• Summative grading
• Identifying standards/criteria for assessment

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Literature

• Taras (2001)
• Develop confidence and independence
• Tutor feedback and student learning should be
  inseparable (Orsmond et al, 2000)
• All students valued the tutor discussion of their
  work enhanced the learning over self-assessment
  alone
• Some criticism around the students being asked to
  grade their own work
• If formative only what is the power dynamic?

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Literature

• Taras (2002)
• Learners need to know what they are trying to
  achieve and how close they are to achieving it
• Formative feedback implies and necessitates a
  partnership (p. 506)
• A summative grade may actually be
  counterproductive for formative purposes
  (Sadler, 1989 121)

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Literature

• Nicol and Macfarlane-Dick (2006)
• Students do not understand feedback given to them
  by tutors
• Dialogue-approach allows discussion and the
  opportunity to verify understanding and clarify
• Use of peers and tutors within dialogue

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Current Study

• Research Question
• What is the added value of a SADD to the
  assessment, learning and teaching experience for
  students and tutors?

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Design

• Mixed method
• 2-phase student questionnaire and tutor focus
  group
• Students (n36) and tutors (n4)
• Undergraduate core module
• SADD within the summative assessment process
• Ethical approval and consent

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Results

• 69 (n25) of student participants
• completed phase 1 of the questionnaire, and
• 72 (n26) of student participants
• completed phase 2. 50 (n2) of tutor
• participants gave consent and were
• available to take part in the focus group

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Enjoyment of the module and enjoyment of the
assessment?
Pearson Chi-Square p0.709
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• 8 (n2) of student participants indicated that
  the
• assessment related activity they enjoyed the most
• was completing the SADD
• 24 (n6) said that completing the SADD was
• the assessment related activity that they least
  enjoyed

It was the easiest and least complicated part.
Allowed me to reflect It couldnt be wrong
and was the quickest to do
After completing essay had this to do as well.
Time consuming and more made up than reflective
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Did the SADD make you look at your work
differently and more critically?
Pearson Chi-Square p0.015
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In what way has completing the SADD made a
difference to your university-based study or
clinical practice?
Know good and bad points for next essay
It hasnt changed my thinking yet
Reflect to a higher level
Encouraged me to follow through learning needs
Gives confidence about self critiquing
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Completion of the SADD and tutor feedback
I took my time in completing it and attempted to
be as critical and reflective as possible. My
mark reflected the effort I had put in
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Added value to overall learning and assessment
experience?

• 48 (n12) said no, 32 (n8) said yes, 20
  (n5) said dont know
• I think it was a waste of time which could be
  spent more wisely on
• actually doing the work
• students perceive assessment as verification of
  learning rather than a
• learning opportunity in itself
• It was just made up because it had to be handed
  in to get 5 extra
• SADD extraneous to the assessment task
• It allowed me to be more self critical in
  looking at work and identify
• mistakes
• shows a reflective insight into the work
• It depends if it helps for future assessments
• implies transferability between different pieces
  of assessment

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Actual and potential demonstration of reflection
through the SADD
Pearson Chi-Square p0.007
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Identification of and planning strategies by
which to meet learning needs
Pearson Chi-Square p0.003
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Planning strategies by which to meet learning
needs and timely tutor feedback
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Preparation for assessment and planning strategies
Pearson Chi-Square p0.020
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Tutor Data
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Enhanced Learning
quite a lot of them didnt hand it in so
obviously they lost the marks for it.
Learning necessitates student effort
I think if you get a good SADD given in you can
work on it and actually try and help the student
give a good response
Lost summative mark versus lost learning
opportunity?
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Developing Reflection

• I tried to give as honest an answer to their
  points as I could It was difficult, if they had
  only put one word answers it was then quite
  difficult to go back and write something
• It would take me a couple of hours to actually
  really get into words what I wanted to say. Not
  because the questions are bad, just because I
  cant say what I want to in words easily
• students dont always engage with that
  reflection and dont see the value of it, and
  whether or not that is because we are not
  engaging with them
• I think they perhaps need to be introduced to it
  earlier so that they are using it constructively,
  so it is not just a paper exercise ...

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Ongoing Learning
Maybe you need a section on here saying how are
you going to do this better next time. So they
are not only identifying it, but they are
then actually going on the next step and saying
what they are going to do
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Tutor Perspectives
this way you are answering them in their terms,
to their responses so I think that it makes it
simpler for them to understand where they are
going wrong and what they are doing right
I change the way I would have given my feedback
based on how they wrote their question we
might be writing feedback in a way that might
actually be quite difficult for the student to
interpret
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Conclusions

• A useful tool to
• - demonstrate reflection
• - identify learning needs
• - plan strategies to address needs
• Tutor feedback beneficial and enhances learning
  opportunity
• Students require specific and detailed feedback
  to learn
• Investment of time to make it work essential
• Should it be summatively assessed?