Designing Assessment

“Assessment of students and the overall teaching learning process in the modular/block

system is expected to move towards student-centered and continuous assessment. As most of the respondents indicated, in a modular approach, assessing students is a difficult task (83.44% agreed). However, with its challenges, instructors used different types of assessment methods (76.16% agreed) and 51.66% of the respondents agreed on the appropriateness of the assessment methods used in the modular approach. The majority of instructors reported that they assess the students’ performance continuously (70.86%) and give effective feedback after each assessment (60.26%). With regard to the results students get, most of the instructors (62.9%) agreed that the modular approach helps students to obtain better grades, but the system does not make them knowledgeable” (Sewagegn & Diale, 2021)

Within a traditional module there is the assumption that the student will complete the course alongside other modules and write a traditional assignment. This does not work within a block taught framework. Within the block teaching framework, assessments need to be marked and fed back to the student in a much shorter time frame. This time frame would be 1 to 2 weeks, so the consideration of assessment throughout the course and different assessment choices can change the face of the 2 week assessment period. 

What is needed is a stripped back model with the focus being “why are you doing what you are doing?” Building the assessment throughout the taught content and sessions. 

The question “What is the best way to measure what you are trying to achieve with the students?” is a key component to how the taught sessions are designed. Learning Outcomes need to be met and are the measure for which we assess the students. This, however, is where the question is most prevalent. The consideration of how the assessment demonstrates the requirements of the learning outcomes, and how the assessment can be dynamic and potentially provide student choice. 

Often this needs to be more explicit so that it can be properly knitted together and be clear to the students how and where they are meeting the learning objectives. 

Within the assessment of a block there needs to be a clear explanation of the formative tasks and an obvious connection made to why they need to do it, how it helps them and where it can improve summative tasks. 

There are departments that have struggled to move away from the traditional assessments.

Synoptic Assessment (Assessment across modules) can be a key part of scaffolding the learning and making sure that students engage with the key concepts.

This can make 2x20 credit modules feel like a 40 credit. The design of the assessment across them both can be smaller quizzes, group tasks as well as essays or reflections. 

By asking “What are the themes?” the assessments can be tailored to LO and this can then be key which mode of assessment works and not just the timing able to achieve it. 

With the course teaching it again fits to why and how am I assessing? 

This then progresses to student choice. Tell them what they need to demonstrate but let them choose and design how that might be. This may be more appropriate at level 4. 

It can be built over multiple blocks  but there needs to be built in checkpoints and as highlighted in Dixon & O’Gorman, (2020) the assessment should not trail between the modules, but the demonstration of the learning should be. 

Learning hubs are non-credit bearing courses that provide skills that fill in the gaps. 

This might need more independent study but that in turn needs to be quite directed so that the tailored support required for a student can help improve familiarity. 

Loom analogy. The learning outcomes become the pattern and the shuttle is how we feed the content through. The context is understanding what should be achieved by the end and as the shuttle passes new areas are developed.

The course teams decide how the learning hubs fit and work to suit the entire course, creating links and support for the modules.