ASSESSING STUDENTS: FROM CONSTRAINING TO ENHANCING LEARNING

Being assessed has a powerful influence on students. While assessment can have a positive influence on students, too often it is negative. One identified negative influence is how assessment can foster unproductive study habits that fail to focus on relevant learning outcomes. The presentation will explore the ways in which assessment interacts with learning.  It will discuss ways in which we can think differently and more productively about the role of assessment in courses. The transformation of assessment practices in higher education challenges the disciplinary and departmental cultures of assessment that exist within each of our institutions and our taken-for-granted assumptions about what constitutes good assessment. And it further locates consideration of assessment practices within the global agenda that emphasises standards and criteria in higher education and their representation in learning outcomes. A particular focus will be on the importance of students developing the capacity to make effective judgements about their own work.

It will consider the question: how, through simple changes in task design and activities related to assessment events, can assessment engage students more actively, have a positive impact on learning and enhance the learning experiences of all students?