Transcript Principles: How might we best use them to enhance practice ? A presentation to Queen’s University Belfast Mark Russell King’s College London @markrussell.

Principles: How might we best use
them to enhance practice ?
A presentation to
Queen’s University Belfast
Mark Russell
King’s College London
@markrussell
Briefly introduce yourself and …
Discuss with your neighbours
what you would do if you wanted
to fail more students and / or
provide them with a lousy
experience?
Learning = f (assessment)?
From what the
students tell us…
to
How to design a
learning
environment
Assessment and desirable Learning
The methods we use to assess
students are one of the most critical
of all influences on their learning.
(Ramsden, 1992)
Assessment and designed Learning
Designed
Learning
Activities
Intended
Learning
Outcomes
Designed
Learning
Activities
Intended
Learning
Outcomes
Designed
Assessment
Activities
Designed
Assessment
Activities
What is working now?
• Take a few minutes to tell your neighbour a
couple of things about your current assessment
endeavours that you know / think or have a
hunch that works. Specifically tell them…
– What you do that you know / think / have a hunch
works.
– How you know it works.
•
Swap over
– Jot a few notes on a Post-It note
What does the literature suggest is good assessment?
Conditions under which assessment supports
students learning
Setting assessment tasks
1.
Capture enough study time (in and out of class)
2.
Are spread out evenly across timeline of study
3.
Lead to productive activity (deep vs surface)
4.
Communicate clear and high expectations
Feedback Conditions
5.
Is sufficient (in frequency; detail)
6.
Is provided quickly enough to be useful
7.
Focuses on learning rather than on marks
8.
Is linked to assessment criteria/expected outcomes
9.
Makes sense to students
10.
Is received by students and attended to
11.
Is acted upon, to improve work and/or learning
(Gibbs & Simpson, 2004)
Good assessment and feedback practice should:
1 Help to clarify what good performance is (goals, criteria, standards)
2 Encourage 'time and effort' on challenging learning tasks
3 Deliver high-quality feedback information that helps learners to self-correct
4 Provide opportunities to act on feedback (to close any gap between current
and desired performance)
5 Ensure that summative assessment has a positive impact on learning
6 Encourage interaction and dialogue around learning (peer and teacher-student)
7 Facilitate the development of self-assessment and reflection in learning
8 Give choice in the topic, method, criteria, weighting or timing of assessments
9 Involve students in decision-making about assessment policy and practice
10 Support the development of learning groups and learning communities
11 Encourage positive motivational beliefs and self-esteem
12 Provide information to teachers that can be used to help shape their teaching
(Nicol, 2009)
Assessment…
1. Should be for learning, not simply of learning
2. Should be reliable, valid, fair and consistent
3. Should incorporate effective and constructive feedback
4. Should be innovative and have the capacity to inspire and motivate such as
with the use of technology
5. Should measure understanding and application, rather than technique and
memory
6. Should be conducted throughout the course, not simply positioned as a final
event
7. Should develop key skills such as peer and reflective assessment
8. Should be central to staff development and teaching strategies, and frequently
reviewed
9. Should be of a manageable amount for both students and tutors
10. Should encourage dialogue between students and their tutors, and students
and their peers
(NUS’ Principles of effective assessment)
(Centre for Excellence in Teaching & Learning
in Assessment for learning, Northumbria
University)
Assessment Standards Manifesto (AsSKe)
Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education
1.
Encourages contact between students and lecturers
2.
Develops reciprocity and cooperation among students
3.
Encourages active learning
4.
Gives prompt feedback
5.
Emphasizes time on task
6.
Communicates high expectations
7.
Respects diverse talents and ways of learning
(Chickering & Gamson, 1987)
As a (possible) summary …
Good assessment for learning …
…Engages students with assessment criteria
…Supports personalised learning
…Focuses on student development
…Ensures feedback leads to improvement
…Stimulates dialogue
…Considers staff and student effort
How best to use such Principles / Themes ?
Principles
and
Staff
People matter
Provide alignment diagnostics?
12
Show the Features and Consequences?
13
Without trivialising …
Some quick ideas
14
Principles
and
Practice
Practice matters
Share (P’s) Themes in Practice (TiPs) #1?
17
Share (P’s) Themes in Practice (TIPs) #2
18
Principles
and
Students
Students matter
Beyond smiling faces
Principles
and
Processes
Processes matter
Programme design
Programme review
Assurance or opportunities for
enhancement?
A little further …
Is the notion of a dual
professional properly
promoted?
Use, don’t hide-away
If we all have a
responsibility then we all
should be engaged with
the principles
What about you ?
How do you personally reflect and
engage your colleagues and your
students with your thinking about /
(principles of) good education?
Summary
• Assessment matters
• Work with the organisation yet look for CPI
• Develop P’s that are relevant for you and
continually work with …
– Staff
– Students
– Processes
You and the Institution:
A beautiful partnership
A workshop at
Queen’s University Belfast
Mark Russell
King’s College London
@markrussell
Working with you … Ranking the Challenges
06/11/2015 | | Slide 29
On your tables
• Lay out the attitudinal statement (SA,A,NAND,D,SD)
• Share out the challenge statements among your table
• By yourself place the statements you have been allocated alongside the
attitudinal statement that best reflects your view (1-2 mins).
• Looking at the location of the statements discuss if you agree / disagree
with the given location and offer justification to your table. Move the
challenge statements to a new ‘table-agreed’ location.
slide 30
What did you learn?
The most likely thing I will do as a consequence
of this ‘Challenge Ladder’ activity is
1. Make a note of a contact around the table
2. Try out a solution I just heard about
3. Share more widely the solution I created and just spoke about
(others seemed to like it)
4. Use/modify the idea as an activity for use with 'staff' at my
institution
5. Use/modify the idea as an activity for use with 'students' at
my institution
6. Nothing
slide 32
Working with the institution
1. In what ways are our institutional processes helping and
hindering our assessment intentions ?
2. Your team has been brought in to create the educational
governance and structures / activities to build brighter
assessment futures.
What will you do?
• This year?
• Within three years?
• Within six years?
As a possible summary…
•
If we are serious, we need to…
– recognise that responsibility for the enhancement of assessment rests
with many stakeholders (including us).
– work in ways that are context specific but nudge where needed
– give people opportunities to share their work and thinking
– be appreciative (where we can) and try not to be too value laden
Institutions are not bricks and mortar.
They are made up of people and
systems. As difficult as it is, we can
influence both!
And finally…