1. Constructing knowledge using patchwork text assessments with a critical twist (workshop) Dr Alfredo Gaitán Dept of Psychology Thirteenth CRA Annual Residential Seminar – November 21-22, 2013

2. Aims: – To experience what it is like to produce a PTA on a topic of your choice. – To discuss different features and identify opportunities. – To consider ways in which PTAs can make visible the learner’s process of construction of knowledge, including gains in subject knowledge and epistemological shifts (and refer them to longer term development).

3. What is a PTA? Problems with essays: – Written at the last minute, panic, etc. – No way to monitor progress and offer support – Focus on earlier topics (more time) – “...style is difficult and alien”, “disenfranchises students”, unable to express their views or experiences. – Need to present a ‘product’ rather than the process, or provisional understandings Richard Winter (2003)2003

4. What is a PTA? “the patch work text assignment consists of a carefully structured series of short pieces of writing, carried out at regular intervals throughout the course - typically over a term or semester”. “small-scale writing tasks are varied in style and genre”. (e.g. accounts of personal experience, critical reviews, research proposal, etc.) “each piece of writing is shared with other students” and the tutor At the end: “students submit an overall assignment consisting of their collection of short pieces (edited and perhaps amended) together with a final retrospective commentary”. Source: Winter (2003)

5. Getting into pairs and choosing one of the following topics: Learning in HE similar/diff with Secondary Ed Motivation for learning Assessment and their impact on learning Creativity: its place in HE Personal Development Planning In real life PTAs are individual assignments Please, write the topic on the brown envelope

6. PATCH 1 Discuss and write a short summary of what you know about the topic (the three most important ideas) and 2 key questions (200 words) on yellow card (‘Patch 1’) BLOG on (topic) Patch 1 10 minutes

7. Period of study Skim read the Report of Academic Experience of Students at English universities – 2012 (Bekhradnia 2012). 10 minutes

8. PATCH 2 Write a summary of what you discovered (related to the questions in P1), based on the resource on yellow card (‘Patch 2’) (400 words) BLOG on (topic) 10 minutes Patch 2 Patch 1

9. Period of study Watch the TED talk by Ken Robinson entitled ‘Changing education paradigm’.TED talk by Ken Robinson 13 minutes

10. PATCH 3 Write 3 new key questions based on resource, and some possible answers on yellow card (‘Patch 3’) (400 words) BLOG on (topic) 10 minutes Patch 2 Patch 1 Patch3

11. Final Commentary Write a Final Commentary in an attempt to integrate all and comment on process in white card (500 words) and return by post or by email to me alfredo.gaitan@beds.ac.uk alfredo.gaitan@beds.ac.uk BLOG on (topic) Patch 2 Patch 1 Patch3 FC LATER!

12. Patchwork Text Assessment (How it is produced in real life) Final commentary (500 words) – Week 12 Prior knowledge & experiences (400 words) - Week 4. Inquiry 1: Groups generates key questions and share them with the class (anyone can comment). Week 5 Individual exploration (supported by independent reading of dominant approaches) of two key questions generated by group (400 words) – Week 7 Your critical review (800 words) – added to blog on the day of seminar. Inquiry 2: Groups generates new key questions and share them with the class (anyone can comment) – Week 8 Individual exploration (supported by independent reading of critical material) of the key questions generated by your group (400 words) – Week 10 2341 Your blog C Lectures on Critical Social Psychology

13. Points for discussion PTAs can document the learning process PTAs can support the learning process (construction of subject knowledge that takes into account prior knowledge) PTAs take away the stress from assessments PTAs increase engagement throughout the course PTAs can be combined with a pedagogy (inquiry-based learning, experiential learning PTAs can help document shifts in thinking and personal epistemologies (especially of a critical approach is introduced)

14. Research Two projects have been carried out at Bedfordshire University in 2010 and 2012. PTAs have been analysed in terms of arguments in order to explore the learning processes as construction of knowledge. The patterns of change in the content (types of claims) indicate shifts in thinking (microdevelopment) that resemble the sequences described in the literature on personal epistemologies (macrodevelopment).

15. References Upton, P. & Taylor, C. (2013). Is online Patchwork Text Assessment the panacea for assessment practices in higher education? Psychology Teaching Review, 19(1), 44- 49. Winter, R. (2003). Contextualising the patchwork text: Addressing problems of assessment in higher education. Innovation in Education and Teaching International 40(2), 112-121. Wesson, C. (2013). Introducing patchwork assessment to a social psychology module: The utility of feedback. Psychology Teaching Review, 19(2), 97-105. RESOURCES: Bekhradnia, B. (2012). The academic experience of students at English universities – 2012 report. Higher Education Policy Institute. http://www.hepi.ac.uk/466- 2060/The-Academic-Experience-of-Students-in-English-Universities.html Robinson, K. (2010). Changing education paradigm. TED talks. http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_changing_education_paradigms.html