Enhancing Assessment and Feedback: A Student Perspective HaSS Faculty Assessment and Feedback Event Tuesday 1 st March 2016 Matthew Price and David Jones

Overview Comparatively low satisfaction with assessment and feedback is a longstanding, sector-wide issue NSS 2015 Overall Satisfaction of Newcastle students is 91%, compared to a sector-wide average of 86% and an upper quartile average of 90%. Satisfaction with assessment and feedback is 71% compared to sector average of 73% and upper quartile average of 77%. PTES % of respondents satisfied with the overall quality of their course, yet only 74% were satisfied with assessment and feedback provision.

NSS assessment and feedback related questions: The criteria used in marking have been clear in advance – Overall 76%; HaSS 77% Assessment arrangements and marking have been fair – Overall 78%; HaSS 78% Feedback on my work has been prompt – Overall 71%; HaSS 71% I have received detailed comments on my work – Overall 68%; HaSS 72% Feedback on my work has helped me clarify things I did not understand – Overall 64%; HaSS 66%

TEAs 2015: Outstanding Contribution to Feedback “Their feedback with essays and essay plans is amazing. They thoroughly engage with the topics you are interested in and always have something to say about how you could make your argument more three dimensional and coherent [...] When writing essays, they ask each individual student to come to their office with an essay plan so they can talk it through with you and draw out your best ideas which will make your essay the best it can be [….] They give such positive feedback to your ideas which you may have been unsure of, giving you confidence that they are good and can form a basis of your argument.”

TEAs 2015: Outstanding Contribution to Feedback “With this person, feedback is hardly only on paper. It is often common practice with their students to make use of their surgery hours before and after a deadline has passed, where written work can be discussed in detail […] They always take extra time to make sure they provide students with adequate background reading to support their claims and constantly work towards making sure their students produce academic work of the highest quality.”

TEAs 2015: Outstanding Contribution to Feedback

Assessment and Feedback: What’s the Point? Student expectations and staff expectations may differ For students, feedback: Informs future practice Closes gap between current and desired performance Encourages deep, active learning Aids progression

Feeding Forward: Formative Assessment and Feedback Assessment for learning rather than assessment of learning Allows students to develop feedback literacy and internalise standards in a less pressurised context Can be discussed through informal methods of feedback – peer assessment; self-assessment

Obstacles to Effective Feedback/Feed- forward Time constraints Breaking habit and convention – lack of engagement and low uptake of new ideas Modularisation Maintaining standards

Obstacles to Effective Feedback/Feed- forward Time constraints Breaking habit and convention – lack of engagement and low uptake of new ideas Modularisation Maintaining standards

Conclusions Great work is already being done! Replicate existing good practice through sharing of resources Harness the views of students

Resources Assessment Standards Knowledge Exchange (ASKe) David Nichol and Debra McFarlane, ‘Formative Assessment and Self-Regulated Learning: A Model and Seven Principles of Good Feedback Practice’ (2005)‘Formative Assessment and Self-Regulated Learning: A Model and Seven Principles of Good Feedback Practice’ Higher Education Academy, A Marked Improvement: Transforming Assessment in Higher Education (2012)A Marked Improvement: Transforming Assessment in Higher Education NUS, Comprehensive Guide to Learning and Teaching NUS, Comprehensive Guide to Learning and Teaching (2015) Transforming the Experience of Students Through Assessment (TESTA)