16 September 2008

PedR Tuesday 16 September 2008

Outside speaker:

Paul Orsmond, Staffordshire Uni

CC, Steve Maw, SJ, CJRW, Geetha, HP, PG, AMC, JB, AJC, DH, JS

Presentation based on that given at HEA annual conference 2008

Self assessment in a community of practice

• Paul spoke about how self assessment perceived by students is usually of a product – the essay, poster etc
• However, students do engage in a community of practice: mutual engagement, joint enterprise, shared resources, learning strategies
• The external imposition of Paul's ideas on learning strategies may be resisted– instead we should look more at development of what is already inate in students
• Scaffolding isn't working, working with the students and engagement is key.
• Students were definitely self assessing and making a peer judgment
• Assessment for learning as apposed to assessment as learning – closer to the real situation, making self assessment judgments most of the time and their learning occurs simultaneously.
• Variation and marking – although criteria were agreed with students, they marked posters in a peer assessment exercise, they did not mark to the criteria, they marked on the variation of the work in the whole body – did not know how to mark the first one but once they had seen the group they knew what to do. Could be influential on how the students interpret feedback in this context
• The language used by students to talk to one another is specific and specific language for talking to tutors.
• Therefore we have two unaligned communities of practice (CAP) – academics CAP and student CAP
• Paul argues that signaling for learning could come from tutor discussion of own conceptual understanding – revealing different points of view can show students variation from which one idea may align with their own concepts.
• We are working towards students becoming biologists – ask students: do you see yourself as a a biologist ? at different points in their studies.

Alan also blogged about this meeting.

HEA talk asssessment strand: Wednesday 02 July 2008, 10.15-10.45.
Student self-assessment within communities of assessment practice
This paper considers the role of self-assessment carried out by biology students within a community of assessment practice. Factors that may influence students' movement with their community of practice are considered as are the implication for tutors when considering learning and teaching strategies.
Paul Orsmond, Staffordshire University