Should we be concerned about student attendance or their engagement Should we be concerned about student attendance or their engagement? . . . (or either??) A pilot for Accounting students: Student engagement via regular summative assessment Gary Stead: Senior Lecturer in Accounting g.stead@shu.ac.uk Glen Cookson: Senior Lecturer in Accounting g.cookson@shu.ac.uk

Learning Objectives Gain insight into; The positive and negative effects of using this approach to improve student engagement The subsequent impact on the students' journey to becoming independent learners

The situation BA Accounting and Finance BA Forensic Accounting 2 x modules (Level 4) Financial Accounting Management Accounting

The challenge So, lets maximise attendance? . . . . Physical attendance felt very low Concerns around professional behaviours Lack of fundamental accounting knowledge at level 5 and in some cases level 6 So, lets maximise attendance? . . . .

Students need to be engaged Our solution Students need to be engaged

Intervention - focus on "Engagement" Decision made to award marks for prior seminar work and submit it IN CLASS FORMATIVE SUMMATIVE Isn't this what we do already?

Intervention - the specifics Financial Accounting assessment profile Prior to intervention 40% Phase Test 60% Exam (Influenced by professional body exemptions)

Intervention - the specifics Financial Accounting assessment profile Post intervention 10% Phase Test (Semester 1) 10% Phase Test (Semester 2) 10% for engagement (Semester 1) 10% for engagement (Semester 2) 60% Exam Phase Test split to allow feedforward 20 x set of engagement questions (1 set for each seminar)

Engagement - what is it? 'Student engagement is concerned with the interaction between the time, effort and other relevant resources invested by both students and their institutions intended to optimise the student experience and enhance the learning outcomes and development of students and the performance, and reputation of the institution.' (Trowler, 2010)

Engagement - Our incarnation "In order to engage in the module and be awarded marks each week you will be required to: Attend the seminar and attempt the tutorial questions BEFORE every seminar and be prepared to discuss and/or present them to your seminar tutor during the seminar".   Attempt: An attempt at a question is not where a perfect answer is achieved. You will be deemed to have attempted your pre seminar work if you have made a valid attempt at answering ALL THE PRE-SEMINAR QUESTIONS and be able to discuss any difficulties/challenges you faced whilst doing so.   

Engagement - Our incarnation What happens if a student fails to make a valid attempt? "There are two outcomes from not engaging: Outcome 1 - Marks still awarded: If you fail to attend your seminar and/or fail to make a valid attempt your module tutor will expect you to contact them, via email, explaining the reasons for non-engagement no later than 24 hours after your seminar. You will also be required to email your attempt to your seminar tutor for review within this 24 hour window. Outcome 2 - Marks not awarded: Should you fail to notify your tutor within 24 hours of your seminar finishing AND fail to email your pre seminar question attempt you will lose your mark for that week".

Engagement - Our incarnation What if a student has a genuine reason for missing consecutive seminars?   "If you feel you are likely to miss more than one seminar in succession we urge you to make contact with your Student Support Officer (SSO)". If regular non-attendance is for a justifiable reason an exception can be made whereby marks can still be awarded via electronic submission ONLY as long as this is BEFORE the seminar".

Findings

Data collected - academic year 2016/17 Prior accountancy experience Post 16 educational background UCAS points Semester 1 and 2 engagement marks Phase test 1 and 2 marks (%)

Focussing on Engagement Engagement one and phase test one b = 4.90 Engagement two and phase test two b = 3.78

Focussing on Engagement So submitting all the engagement marks is associated with an increase in phase test marks of: 49 percent points for phase test one 37.8 percent points for phase test two This equates to an increase of 8.68 percent points for the overall module mark

Was it worth it?

Short group discussion Are we prohibiting the ownership of learning by using regular summative assessment as a tool? Are we encouraging or discouraging independent learning? (Discussions per table followed by 5 minute plenary)

References HEFCE (2008) Tender for a Study into Student Engagement. Bristol: Higher Education Funding Council for England. Kuh, G. D. (2003). What We're Learning About Student Engagement From NSSE: Benchmarks for Effective Educational Practices. Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 35:2, 24-32. Skinner, E. A., Kindermann, T. A., & Furrer, C. J. (2009). A Motivational Perspective on Engagement and Disaffection: Conceptualization and Assessment of Children's Behavioral and Emotional Participation in Academic Activities in the Classroom. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 69, 493-525. Trowler, V. (2010). Student Engagement literature review. The Higher Education Academy https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/system/files/studentengagementliteraturereview_1.pdf