EDUC 6553 - Assessment and Evaluation

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2016

Assessment and evaluation are key directors of education, and are pivotal to learning and teaching. Assessment is the process of making a judgement or measurement of worth of an entity, example person or process. Evaluation in education involves gathering and evaluating data evolving from planned learning activities, delivery of instructions and/or programs. This course examines the purposes, paradigms and types of assessment and evaluation used in education, and in particular the innovations associated with them. Their roles in directing learning, provision of feedback to students, feedback strategies to enhance the delivery of instructions and curriculum evaluation, and ensuring standards are achieved are explored. Emerging alternative assessment and reporting processes and the underlying philosophies of selected curricula models/frameworks are highlighted. Specifically, the roles of learners/students, teachers/educators, curriculum designers and administrators/policy makers in assessment and evaluation are discussed.

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Course Details

Course Code	EDUC 6553
Course	Assessment and Evaluation
Coordinating Unit	School of Education
Term	Semester 2
Level	Postgraduate Coursework
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 3 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Assessment	Group work 15%, Poster preparation and presentation 30%, Peer evaluation of poster 10%, SGDE 15%, Evaluation proposal 30%

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Edward Palmer

Dr. Edward Palmer
School of Education
The University of Adelaide
Level 8, Room 8.23
Nexus 10 Building, 10 Pulteney St
Adelaide, 5005 SA
Ph: +61 8 8313 5630
Email: edward.palmer@adelaide.edu.au

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

The course introduces broad concepts, theories and practices in assessment and evaluation in education. The course provides theoretical, collaborative-dialogue and hands-on sessions, and to achieve the following objectives and outcomes. Participants will be able to

Demonstrate critical insight into the principles, pardigms and purpose of assessment and evaluation
Utilise the various forms of assessment in learning contexts, and evaluate the appropriateness of rubrics, standards, benchmarks and cut-off scores;
Demonstrate understanding of assessment designs that promote learning, engage learners and provide credible evidence of effectiveness

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	3
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	2
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	1-3
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	2
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	3

Learning & Teaching Modes

Class based and online activities

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

Workload	Total Hours
1 x 2-hours Seminars per week	24 hours per semester
1 x 1-hour tutorial/SGD per week	12 hours per semester
6 hours reading per week	72 hours per semester
2 hours research per week	24 hours per semester
2 hours assignment preparation per week	24 hours per semester
	Total = 156 hours per semester

Learning Activities Summary

Topics by week

Week Topic

1          Introduction
2          Blooms Taxonomy and Design
3          Assessment Items
4          Selected Response Items
5          Constructed Response Items
6          Reflective and Authentic Assessment Items
7          Peer and Self Assessment
8          Standardised Testing
9          Feedback and skills based assessment
10        Evaluation 1
11        Evaluation 2

Specific Course Requirements

None

Small Group Discovery Experience

All tutorial activities include SGD experience with students working in groups of 3-4 problem-solving rich tasks. Lecturer/tutors will provide support throughout all tutorial-based SGD activities.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment overview

10 Minute presentation Formative and Summative 15% addresses learning outcome 1
2,000 word Assessment Design Formative and Summative 50% addresses learning outcome 3
500 word Peer Assessment Report Formative and Summative 20% addresses learning outcome 2
500 word Report Summative 15% addresses learning outcome 2

Assessment Detail

1. Choose a mode or type of assessment, research its use and present your findings to the class (15%). Week 3 (Learning Outcome 1)

2. Design a series of three assessment tasks appropriate to the teaching contexts within which you will be working. There should be one bank of 10 selected response questions, three constructed response tasks, one reflective task and one authentic assessment (45%), all complete with appropriate feedback. (Learning Outcome 3)

3. You will peer assess two classmates assessments and provide feedback (10%) The multiple choice questions from task 2 will be completed by your classmates and you will analyse the data from them to measure the effectiveness of the assessment. (20%)(Learning Outcomes 2 and 3)

4. You will write a report detailing how you have responded to feedback on your task and evaluate the course in terms of its stated learning outcomes (10%) (Learning Outcome 2)

Submission

All submissions are to be online

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator