Reflect/ Produce – Week 8

• Consider what you have learned about your own and others' practice in supporting student learning from doing this week’s activities.

I have learnt that although I have little experience currently of designing and assessing it allows me to come at the subject with a completely clear head to form a foundation to build on. By reading other peers’ theories on important assessment principles, it has made me realise that with a template of points to ensure I cover nothing has particularly surprised me in terms of ensuring I maintain a student-centred approach.

• What have you learned this week about formative and summative assessment and feedback in HE?

Formative assessment monitors student learning during a course and summative assessment evaluates a student learning at the end of the course. I have learnt that student assessment can not only benefit the student, but can also allow teachers to develop their practice by looking at points which students struggled with and asking themselves, why? This adds to the circular motion of teaching and learning. I have learnt the importance of not over loading the student with assessment tasks to avoid anxiety inducing. Surface learning is easier to achieve when assessments are in mind due to creating extrinsic learning (just learning the facts). To avoid this consider the type of assessment and how it relates to the students ILO. Could this be a verbal presentation? E- portfolio? Physical artefact or object? Essay?

• How did you learn this?

I found the scholarship reading Bloxham & Boyd (2007), chapters 2 and 3 helpful, also the reflect/ discuss forum for week 8 helpful to contextualise the scholarship to more experiences teachers that work in creative teaching roles (Giulia speaking about variety and Evgeni speaking about the importance of industry connection)

• What have you learned this week about the practice of supporting student learning in HE?

It is important to consider assessment through all aspects of the teaching strategy. This consideration needs to be fed into the Learning outcomes, the module brief, and be communicated clearly throughout the students learning. It is important to ensure that the student’s assessment is in line with moderation across summative assessment, course level and university standards.

• How has your understanding of this changed from doing this week’s topic and activities?

I have a new found appreciation of how assessment fits into the whole students experience and can guide the learner to achieve.

• What has challenged you about doing this?

I have felt challenged in this week’s tasks, as I have little contextual experience on the subject. I have tried to over come this by preparing questions to ask Bath Spa about the following session I have shadowing Aimme during assessment and forming them from the 8 assessment principles as outlined in Bloxham & Boyd, 2007.

• What has surprised you?

I was surprised that assessment in general can lend itself to have a surface learning outcome, but after reading scholarship I can understand why this is and potential ways to avoid it.

• What has this taught you about your strengths in your practice in supporting student learning, through formative and summative assessment and feedback?

I feel that this week’s tasks have allowed me to reflect on my past experience of being assessed through formative and summative assessments. It has given me a new found appreciation and made me realise why I was assessed in certain ways in order to either feedback to the teacher as to whether I understood a task, or whether it ha provided information or statistics to external assessing bodies. It has also made me realise that I have good instinct as to what is helpful to a student’s learning and to implement, and what could be detrimental and to avoid.

• What actions can you identify from this that you could take to further develop your practice in formative and summative assessment and feedback in the future?

I feel that by familiarising myself with the 8 assessment principles and using them as a checklist when designing future assessment this will ensure that students are supported fully in assessment and feedback in the future. I would like to learn about other methods of assessment by reading further comments on the forum to give myself a toolkit of ideas for my teaching practice.

• How well do you think you have achieved the learning outcomes for this week (found in the Introduction section)? Is there anything else you could do to achieve these learning outcomes for this week?

Yes, I feel that I have achieved the LO this week. I feel that I could support this further by reading the optional reading from this week to further embed this knowledge and take part in the interactive webinar on Thursday.