Assessment Standards Knowledge exchange

Making change happen: using

outcomes from projects

Prof. Margaret PriceASKe Centre for Excellence

Outline

Where to start

Leverage

Effectiveness

Using what we have learned

Brief overview – FDTL

FDTL Engaging students with assessment feedback

Three partners: Oxford Brookes, Bedfordshire, Bradford plus cascade and transferability partners

The aims of the project were to:• develop cost-effective practices and procedures to engage students with

assessment feedback; • encourage the adoption of practices which will engage students with

assessment feedback; and • share understanding of students experiences within the HE community.

Methods:

Literature review, case studies, questionnaire, interviews, cascade partner initatives.

Dissemination audiences:

Practitioners, educational developers, policy makers

Brief overview - CETL

Assessment Standards Knowledge exchange

Aim:

to improve student learning through sharing and applying an understanding of assessment standards within a broad community of practice.

Methods:

embedding proven good practice, range of research project to develop understanding and better practice, undertake community initiatives to support involvement.

Dissemination

Raising awareness, developing understanding, active engagement …

HLST LTSN

ISL

OCSLD

STAFFSTUDENTS

Pre- HE

EM

PLO

YERS

ALUMNI

Pedagogic Networks, e.g. SACWG HERDSA AAHE

HEIS

FDTL networks

The ACADEMY

STUDENT UNION

Placement Employers

QCA

Partnership Alliance

Regional Secondary Schools

‘A’ Level Boards

Plagiarism Adivsory Service

Professional Associations e.g. CIM, CMI

CETL Network

The Oak

Local employers of Students (part-time jobs)

BEST, Economics LTSN

CETLCORE

BACCHUS

Regional employers

HLST LTSN

ISL

OCSLD

STAFFSTUDENTS

Pre- HE

EM

PLO

YERS

ALUMNI

Pedagogic Networks, e.g. SACWG HERDSA AAHE

HEISHEIS

FDTL networks

The ACADEMY

STUDENT UNION

Placement Employers

QCA

Partnership Alliance

Regional Secondary Schools

‘A’ Level Boards

Plagiarism Adivsory Service

Plagiarism Adivsory Service

Professional Associations e.g. CIM, CMI

Professional Associations e.g. CIM, CMI

CETL Network

The Oak

Local employers of Students (part-time jobs)

BEST, Economics LTSN

CETLCORE

BACCHUS

Regional employers

Beyond the bid: where to start

What do you want to achieve?

‘contrary to intuition and experience in some other areas, transformation of HE by ICT has not been achieved by focussing on the means but by focussing on the ends: on what exactly we want to achieve’ (Draper and Nicol 2006)

further development/research work, change reinforcement

Focus of the goal?

PracticeTargetedWidespread

Policy Strategy Beyond the institution

Planning

Institutional culture

Disciplinary culture

Target level

Timing

Finding the drivers

Institutional culture

Degree of policy definition

Loose

Collegium BureaucracyDegree of control of implementation

Loose Tight

Enterprise Corporation

Tight(McNay, 1995)

Planning

Institutional culture

Disciplinary culture

Student’s approaches to learning can be changed through interventions embedded in the disciplinary context (Norton and Crowley, 1995)

Target level

Timing

Finding the drivers

Focusing the change – level

International

National

Institution

Department

Programme

Individual

Student

Level

• Students and student body – joint initiatives

• Working with practitioners – is change sustainable

• Programme change e.g REAP project examples, Course Design initiatives

• Excellence emerges from departments ‘ where high quality teaching could be seen in these universities it emerged

from within departments rather than being initiatated from the centre’ (Gibbs, Knapper and Piccinin, 2006)

• Institutional – interrelated systems and interest

• National

• International

How do you change a whole university’s teaching and learning? (Lund University 2008)

1. Develop individual teachers practice

2. Develop teacher thinking

3. Develop teacher motivation

4. Develop Communities of practice

5. 1-4 address local issues and problems

6. Identify successful emergent change and spread good practice

7. Develop learning environments

8. Develop learning resources

9. Develop students

10. Develop quality assurance

11. Undertake evaluation

12. Undertake evaluation

13. Develop leadership of teaching

14. Co-ordinated institutional strategy

15. Influence external environment

(Gibbs, 2009)

Level cont’d

• National

• Assessment Standards Manifesto for Change

• Feedback Agenda for Change

• Select committee

• International movement

• Australia

• New Zealand

Timing and finding drivers(using your time and resources effectively)

• Strategic planning round of the institution

• Responding to triggers – NSS results, new post holder, newspaper article, QAA audit, course redesign, select committee report(s), Government policy

• Identifying tensions e.g. between cost and quality (Nimmo & Littlejohn, 2009)

• Who is listening?

• Anticipating issues

Leverage

Evidence Robustness Accessibility Usability Not invented in my back yard

Receptiveness Credibility Acknowledged expertise Authority/power base Opinion leader

Communication Sound bites vs complex ideas Audiences

High level champions

‘Most educational development staff tend to focus on just one or two of all possible levers for change and are not involved at all in most of the others’

(Gibbs, 2009)

Effectiveness of change processes

Top down/bottom up

Single/collective action

Active/passive engagement

Practice/conceptual shift

Mapping the approach Engagement

Active

Local converts Sweep

Approach

Self Collective

Local innovators Flood

Passive

Conclusions - Using what we have learned

Journey travelled Changing practice isn’t enough – assessment practice to assessment literacy Traditional development (hints and tips) is too limited and doesn’t lead to

sustained change Robust, ‘expert’ evidence is essential Appealing to current agendas gives you a voice Isolated change is not sustainable Pedagogic change is a very slow process Networks and alliances strengthen the change effort

In future Plan for the long term Work together Persevere Be persistent in delivering you message and supporting active engagement

References

• Draper, S. & Nicol, D (2006) Transformation in e-learning. Available at http://www.reap.ac.uk/

• Gibbs, G. (2009) Developing students as learners – varied phenomena, varied contexts and a devlopment trajectory for the whole endeavour. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education Issue 1

• Gibbs, G., Knapper, C. & Piccinin,S (2006) Departmental leadership of teaching in research-intyensive environments: a manual. Available at: http://www.lfhe.ac.uk/publications/research.html

• McNay,I. (1995) from cllegial academy to the corporate enterprise: the changing culture og universities. In T. SChuller(Ed) The changing University? Buckingham: SRHE& Open University Press

• Nimmo, A. & Littlejohn, A. (2009) Encouraging learning innovation: recognising and rewarding good practice. Practice and Evidence of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Vol. 4(1) pp41-55

• Norton, L.S. & Crowley, C.M. (1995) Can students be helped to learn how to learn? An evaluation of an Approaches to Learning programme for first year degree students’ Higher Education Vol 29(3) pp307-328