COLLEGE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK STRATEGY 2014/15
Approved by:Signature: Chair of ESG/ADE
Signature: College Dean
Signature: SSIS College Officer (for Guild)
Date of Next Revision: / Autumn Term 2015
A. Introduction and Documentation
This section comprises two main parts:
· Details on the development, dissemination, monitoring and revision of the Strategy. This includes consideration of the process that the College of Social Sciences and International Studies (SSIS) has gone through in developing this Strategy. It should be noted that the College has had a College-wide Assessment and Feedback (A&F) Strategy in place since 2010/11 – so the current Strategy is a revision of previous versions. It is revised annually and approved by all discipline units in the College through active engagement at the Education Strategy Group (ESG). Student consultation continues through Student/Staff Liaison Committees (SSLCs).
· Details of documentation considered in the preparation of the College A&F Strategy.
The Strategy sections will then i) outline our basic commitments (including approaches and practices) relating to A&F and ii) outline any key recommendations/actions that the College is implementing in 2014/15 in relation to A&F practices and detail the reasons for these.
Development, Dissemination, Monitoring and Revision of the Strategy
1. Development
1.1. The Associate Dean Education (ADE) in liaison with the Assistant College Manager (ACM) Education prepares the College A&F Strategy and takes responsibility for revising the Strategy at least once annually.
1.2. Updates and revisions to the Strategy are circulated by e-mail to the SSIS Education Strategy Group (ESG) for comment/discussion at least once annually.
2. Dissemination
2.1. The approved Strategy is made available to staff via the staff intranet and to students via the SSLCs.
2.2. The ESG includes a representative from each unit in the College, normally the Director of Education (DoE), who is responsible for keeping his/her unit up to date on the implementation and revision of the Strategy.
2.3. The ESG includes student representatives (usually Subject Chairs) who are fully involved in discussions relating to development/implementation of the Strategy.
3. Monitoring
3.1. The ADE (working with the ACM Education and ESG) is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Strategy.
3.2. The implementation and monitoring of the Strategy is discussed at the ESG usually in the Spring Term each year.
4. Revision
4.1. In each academic year, the revision of the Strategy is an item for discussion, usually at an Autumn Term ESG meeting.
4.2. Proposed revisions (if any) are circulated electronically to ESG, SSLC representatives and other interested parties upon request during Autumn Term.
4.3. The revised version is confirmed by the end of the Autumn Term.
Key Documentation Utilised in the Preparation of the Strategy
5. The A&F Strategy was developed after consideration of the most recently available documentation/data under various categories.
5.1 Documentation/Data Considered
· SSIS Assessment and Feedback Strategy 2013/14
· College Action Plan (Education Section) 2013/14
· Results from the National Student Survey (NSS) 2014, Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2014 and International Student Barometer (ISB) 2013
· MACE reports 2013/14
· SSLC minutes 2013/14
· External Examiners’ reports 2013/14
· University Generic Assessment Criteria
· University Education Strategy 2014-2020 and Beyond
· University Assessment, Progression and Awarding Handbook 2014
· Vision for the Future of Education and SSIS Response 2014
B. Principles of Assessment and Feedback Underpinning the Strategy
This section starts by detailing the general principles of A&F underpinning this Strategy.
University Principles
6. The College supports the University principles on A&F as detailed below:
6.1 That A&F forms a fundamental part of the learning and teaching process.
6.2 That all A&F practices should promote effective learning.
6.3 That all University processes and procedures for A&F should be explicit, valid and reliable and all students receive parity of treatment.
6.4 That the amount & timing of assessment should enable effective and appropriate measurement of students' achievement of intended learning outcomes (ILOs).
6.5 That all A&F is conducted with rigour and fairness and in a timely manner.
6.6 That programmes use a variety of forms and methods of A&F appropriate to the ILOs of the programme.
Basic College Commitments
7. The College (SSIS) is committed to providing high-quality A&F for all its students.
7.1. Our A&F is intended to help students learn, encouraging, supporting and enabling them to develop as active learners.
7.2. Our assessment is also intended to measure students' performance against the intended learning outcomes for their modules and programmes and maintain the academic standard of our awards.
7.3. Our A&F will enable, demand and measure student progression from level to level, towards more detailed, critical, independent and original work. This measurement will be assisted by the University Generic Assessment Criteria.
7.4. Our A&F will reflect our research-led teaching wherever possible, and particularly at level 6 and beyond. This will enable students to engage with the products of our research, to develop the skills involved in research and to participate at an appropriate level in our research culture.
7.5. We will encourage self-assessment and peer-assessment as a complement to assessment by staff, in order to help students internalise the standards for excellent work.
7.6. We will provide students, staff and External Examiners with clear and timely information about what is expected of students in each of their assignments, whilst allowing enough flexibility for students to demonstrate creativity and originality in the way they complete those assignments.
7.7. We will, insofar as the differences between disciplines allow, ensure that students at the same level are given similar workloads and avoid over-assessment by using approved norms/guidelines.
7.8. We will provide, insofar as the demands of our disciplines allow, a range of forms of assignment, including for example use of formative continuous assessment, presentations and group work.
7.9. We will seek to improve student employability (and vocational) skills through real-life and scenario-based assessment and learning methods and through the involvement, where possible, of external experts in the design and assessment of material.
7.10. We will continue to provide a College based employability/work placement module (SSI2001) at level 5 for 15 credits called ‘Learning from Work Experience in Social Sciences’. It requires 40 hours of approved work or volunteering and its assessment comprises a critical reflective log and an oral presentation. In addition the College has introduced ‘Learning for Teaching: School Experience’ modules at 15 and 30 credits to run at the Streatham and Penryn campuses from 2014/15. These modules include a school placement.
7.11. We will promote the use of Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) to support A&F initiatives. As part of this commitment the College introduced a TEL Strategy in 2013/14.
Information for Students
8. Providing information for students on A&F is a key College commitment.
8.1. The module descriptor for every module will tell students in clear and simple language the number, basic kind, and weighting of assignments in each module, and provide information on the kinds of feedback they can expect.
8.2. We will endeavour to avoid bunching of assessment deadlines wherever feasible by checking module deadlines in advance of confirmation to students. However, where this is not possible (especially for Combined Honours students etc.), we are also committed to providing students with the information and support (e.g. through Personal Tutors) they need to allow them to schedule their work appropriately. The successful adoption of e-BART in SSIS has provided both staff and students with greater flexibility as regards submission dates/times.
8.3. At the start of each module (no later than the end of the second week), students will be informed in detail of the full programme of assignments, with hand-in dates and dates by which they can expect work and/or formative feedback to be returned to them. Where it is necessary or highly desirable that students have attended certain lectures/seminars before starting work on a given assignment, this will be indicated (so as to allow students to schedule their work more appropriately). Students will be reminded of the relevant marking criteria (aligned to the University Generic Assessment Criteria) and notified of any marking criteria specific to the programme and/or module. All assessment criteria are designed to be appropriate for the relevant level of study. Staff will be e-mailed at the start of each academic year to remind them of this requirement. (Action - ACM Education to contact Module Convenors; Monitored - DoEs)
8.4. Staff will also be reminded that, should extraordinary circumstances mean that the programme of assessments (or feedback) needs to be altered in some way (if, for instance, illness prevents a tutor from marking work on schedule), all students must be informed as early as possible of the delay and given a clear revised timetable.
8.5. Students will be reminded in the UG and PGT College Student Handbooks of relevant sections in the TQA Manual, in particular the new Handbook for Assessment, Progression and Awarding. This will also be highlighted by staff as/when relevant. In addition students will be made aware (through handbooks and staff) of the University complaints and appeals procedures as detailed in the University Calendar
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/staff/policies/calendar/part1/otherregs/complaints/
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/staff/policies/calendar/part1/otherregs/appeals/#two (Action - ACM Education; Monitored - ADE)
Feedback to Students
9. Providing feedback to students concerning A&F is a key College commitment.
9.1. All undergraduate students will receive, within the first six weeks of stage 1, some form of feedback on a formative (or occasionally summative) assignment.
9.2. Moreover the feedback will be provided in time for it to assist with students’ final assessment for that module. For example there will be feedback on an essay before the next essay in the same module is due.
9.3. Students will receive feedback (including indicative marks) on assessments within three term-time weeks of the assessment hand-in date, unless advised otherwise by the module leader with reasons specified (e.g. staff illness) in which case feedback should normally be within four term-time weeks. Any staff seeking module exemptions from the three week turn-around requirement will first need to obtain approval from the Taught Faculty Dean and Student Guild (with requests submitted via the SSIS ADE). Students will be made aware that all marks received are indicative only and will be confirmed at the Exam Board. (Action – DoEs with ACM Education; Monitored - ADE)
9.4. During 2014/15 the College continues to move towards a system where the return of internally moderated or double marked assessments to students is the norm (rather than the return of work after marking by the first marker). However we realise that this can occasionally be challenging for some units.
9.5. Students will have access to, and be able to receive feedback on, all examination scripts. The designation of a day for examination feedback (or specific feedback sessions) is being implemented in selected units. This initiative will be further promoted in 2014/15. (Action – DoEs; Monitored – ADE & ACM Education)
9.6. Regarding January examinations, the College will strive to ensure that feedback will be available at the latest by the start of week five of the Spring Term. The feedback will normally consist of access to annotations and comments on exam scripts, generic verbal or written feedback from module convenors and/or individual feedback from Personal Tutors/Module Convenors.
9.7. Feedback will be designed both to explain how the mark given was arrived at (with reference to the appropriate marking criteria) and, where possible, to make suggestions for how the student may improve his/her marks. Continual monitoring of standards of feedback will be carried out over the academic year by DoEs. There will be a renewed focus on encouraging staff to provide typed or e-feedback. (Action - DoEs; Monitored - ADE & ACM Education)
9.8. For assessed work (including examination scripts), either a marked copy will be returned to students, or more usually students will be allowed to inspect a marked copy held by the College. (Also refer to item 9.5)
9.9. Return of feedback to Streatham students will continue to be facilitated via the Amory College Office. Students will also be reminded to collect their coursework promptly. (Action - Student Services Manager; Monitored - ACM Education) In addition modules in some units (e.g. Politics and GSE) are expected to pilot e-feedback and in some cases e-marking with e-feedback.
9.10. The revision week, in the Summer Term, can provide an opportunity for all students to see their Personal Tutors (or Module Convenors/Tutors) and obtain any final feedback or answers to queries in advance of summer examinations/ assessments. (Refer to item 9.5.)
9.11. Innovative A&F practices will be further investigated as part of SSIS engagement with Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL). A SSIS TEL Strategy has been introduced and the key contact is Mike Jeffries (SSIS Education Technologist). It is recognised that SSIS units already adopt innovative A&F methods e.g. use of ‘clickers’ in Law (Turning Point technology) and QuestionMark Perception in Politics. These could be usefully employed more widely across the College. Enhanced use of ELE could also facilitate various aspects of A&F (e.g. via use of Turnitin, provision of formative assessments). As noted above e-feedback will be piloted and e-marking with e-feedback as part of on-going College engagement with OCM (on-line coursework management). (Action - SSIS Education Technologist with Education Enhancement colleagues DoEs; Monitored - ADE)
9.12. An innovative feedback initiative was trialled in SPA in 2014. This involved audio feedback in the ‘Sound and Society’ module. Dr Tom Rice embedded a voice track onto essays saved as PDF files. These audio-enhanced files can be kept on record or submitted to an examiner in much the same way as existing text files. The audio feedback facilitated the provision of detailed comments to students. This pilot of audio feedback has been evaluated (staff and student perspectives) and a report is available for circulation. (Action - Module Leader with SSIS Education Technologist & Education Enhancement colleagues; Monitored - SPA DoE)
9.13. All taught students will be encouraged to meet with their Personal Tutors in the Summer Term (PGT and finalists) or Autumn Term of the next year of study (returners) to discuss their overall results/progression. They will be encouraged to bring their feedback with them for discussion with their Personal Tutors. Attention is drawn to the Personal Tutoring website and relevant good practice: http://as.exeter.ac.uk/support/staffdevelopment/aspectsofacademicpractice/personaltutoring/ (Action - DoEs; Monitored - Senior Personal Tutors ACM Education)