Enhancing learning through formative assessment and feedback

173 Pages·2008·1.155 MB·English

by  Alastair Irons

1111 Enhancing Learning
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Assessment and
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Feedback
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3111 Providing feedback to students is an important aspect of the teacher’s role in
4 higher education. It enables students to learn from assessment and can have a
5 significant impact on the motivation of a learner, both intrinsic (wanting to
6 learn) and extrinsic (needing to learn). This book suggests that the quality and
7 timeliness of feedback are key features in the student learning process and in
8 the teacher/student relationship.
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20111 By encouraging teachers to think about what it is they are trying to achieve
1 in providing formative assessment and feedback, and how these provide an
2 enhanced learning environment for students, Enhancing Learning through
3 Formative Assessment and Feedbackaims to improve student learning oppor-
4 tunities in higher education. Topics discussed include:
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6 ■ principles of formative assessment and feedback
7 ■ the student learning environment
8 ■ formative assessment and feedback techniques

9 ■ making use of ICTs in formative assessment and feedback
30111 ■ benefits of formative feedback for academic staff.
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2 Enhancing Learning through Formative Assessment and Feedbackapplies
3 relevant theories and principles through teaching scenarios and case studies to
4 create a pragmatic framework and set of tools that will allow teachers to engage
5 with students through formative activities. It will appeal to new and experienced
6 teachers in higher and further education, as well as professional developers.
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8 Alastair Ironsis Associate Dean in the School of Computing, Engineering and
9 Information Sciences at Northumbria University.
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Key Guides for Effective Teaching in
Higher Education Series
Edited by Kate Exley
This indispensable series is aimed at new lecturers, post-graduate students
who have teaching time, Graduate Teaching Assistants, part-time tutors and
demonstrators, as well as experienced teaching staff who may feel it’s time to
review their skills in teaching and learning.
Titles in this series will provide the teacher in higher education with practical,
realistic guidance on the various different aspects of their teaching role, which is
underpinned not only by current research in the field, but also by the extensive
experience of individual authors, and with a keen eye kept on the limitations and
opportunities therein. By bridging a gap between academic theory and practice,
all titles will provide generic guidance on teaching, learning and assessment issues,
which is then brought to life through the use of short illustrative examples drawn
from a range of disciplines. All titles in the series will:
■ represent up-to-date thinking and incorporate the use of computing and
information technology (C&IT) where appropriate
■ consider methods and approaches for teaching and learning when there is an
increasing diversity in learning and a growth in student numbers
■ encourage reflexive practice and self-evaluation, and a means of developing
the skills of teaching, learning and assessment
■ provide links and references to other work on the topic and research evidence
where appropriate.
Titles in the series will prove invaluable whether they are used for self-study or as
part of a formal induction programme on teaching in higher education (HE), and
will also be of relevance to teaching staff working in further education(FE)
settings.
Other titles in this series:

Assessing Skills and Practice
– Sally Brown and Ruth Pickford
Assessing Students’ Written Work: Marking Essays and Reports
– Catherine Haines
Designing Learning: From Module Outline to Effective Teaching
– Chris Butcher, Clara Davies and Melissa Highton
Developing Your Teaching: Ideas, Insight and Action
– Peter Kahn and Lorraine Walsh
Giving a Lecture: From Presenting to Teaching
– Kate Exley and Reg Dennick
Small Group Teaching
– Kate Exley and Reg Dennick
Using C&IT to Support Teaching
– Paul Chin
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Enhancing Learning
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Assessment and
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Alastair Irons
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First published 2008
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2007.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2008 Alastair Irons; Chapter 7, the contributors
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Irons, Alastair, 1962–
Enhancing learning through formative assessment/Alastair Irons.
p. cm. – (Key guides for effective teaching in higher
education series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Educational tests and measurements. 2. Feedback
(Psychology) 3. Education, Higher. I. Title.
LB3051.I76 2007
371.27!1–dc22 2007013941
ISBN 0-203-93433-4 Mas ter e-book ISBN
ISBN10: 0–415–39780–4 (hbk)
ISBN10: 0–415–39781–2 (pbk)
ISBN10: 0–203–93433–4 (ebk)
ISBN13: 978–0–415–39780–3 (hbk)
ISBN13: 978–0–415–39781–0 (pbk)
ISBN13: 978–0–203–93433–3 (ebk)
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Contents
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3111 List of illustrations viii
4 Series preface ix
5 Acknowledgements xii
6 List of abbreviations xiii
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Introduction 1
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20111 1 Principles of formative assessment and formative feedback 6
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2 Student learning environment 31
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3 3 Using formative assessment and formative feedback in
4 learning and teaching 52
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4 Formative assessment and feedback techniques 70
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7 5 Making use of ICTs in formative assessment and formative
8 feedback 87

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6 Benefits of formative feedback for academic staff 98
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1 7 Case studies 108
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8 Summary and recommendations 135
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5 References 140
6 Index 151
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Illustrations
FIGURES
7.1 Effectiveness of initiative: student outcome 114
7.2 PASS attendance 117
7.3 A typical KELPIE screen 120
7.4 Marking categories template 123
7.5 The examination board Collection procedure 130
TABLES
7.1 Effectiveness of initiative: student attrition rates 112
7.2 Effectiveness of initiative: student recruitment 116
7.3 Marking categories 121

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Series preface
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3111 This series of books grew out of discussions with new lecturers and part-
4 time teachers in universities and colleges who were keen to develop their
5 teaching skills. However, experienced colleagues may also enjoy and find
6 merit in the books, particularly the discussions about current issues that
7 are impacting on teaching and learning in further education (FE) and
8 higher education (HE), e.g. Widening Participation, disability legislation
9 and the integration of computing and information technology (C&IT) in
20111 teaching.
1 New lecturers are now likely to be required by their institutions to take
2 part in teaching development programmes. This frequently involves
3 attending workshops, investigating teaching through mini-projects and
4 reflecting on their practice. Many teaching programmes ask participants to
5 develop their own teaching portfolios and to provide evidence of their
6 developing skills and understanding. Scholarship of teaching is usually an
7 important aspect of the teaching portfolio. New teachers can be asked to
8 consider their own approach to teaching in relation to the wider literature,

9 research findings and theory of teaching and learning. However, when
30111 people are beginning their teaching careers a much more pressing need
1 may be to design and deliver an effective teaching session for tomorrow.
2 Hence the intention of this series is to provide a complementary mix of
3 very practical teaching tips and guidance together with a strong basis and
4 clear rationale for their use.
5 In many institutions the numbers of part-time and occasional teachers
6 actually outnumber the full-time staff. Yet the provision of formal training
7 and development for part-time teachers is more sporadic and variable across
8 the sector. As a result, this diverse group of educators can feel isolated and
9 left out of the updating and support offered to their full-time counterparts.
4011 Never have there been so many part-time teachers involved in the design
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