Students’ perceptions of the role of assessments at higher education

Lynam, Siobhán; Cachia, Moira

doi:10.1080/02602938.2017.1329928

Cited by 53 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…This suggests that the length of time in the course may coincide with an increasing level of insight and understanding from students of the intended learning outcomes and design considerations of the assessment items they undertake. This would be in keeping with Lynam and Cachia's (2017) findings that student engagement with assessment was positively aligned with increasing academic maturity. It is also a likely reflection of the increasing 'authenticity' of assessment as the curriculum moves into the clinically focused years by allowing more practical and clinically applied tasks to be set, in contrast to testing scientific knowledge and generic skill development in the junior years (Gulikers et al 2004).…”

Section: Relevance -From Learning For Examinations To Learning To Be supporting

confidence: 87%

Exploring the Impact of Assessment on Medical Students’ Learning

Preston

Gratani

Owens

et al. 2019

Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education

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What and how students learn depend largely on how they think they will be assessed. This study aimed to explore medical students' perception of the value of assessment and feedback on their learning, and how this relates to their examination performance. A mixed methods research design was adopted in which a questionnaire was developed and administered to the students to gain their perceptions of assessments. Perceptions were further explored in focus group discussions. Survey findings were correlated with students' performance data and academic coordinators' perceptions. Students' perceptions of the level of difficulty of different assessments mirrored their performance in examinations, with an improvement observed in clinical assessments as students progressed through their degree. Students recognised that feedback is important to allow improvements and seek more timely, better quality and personalised feedback. Academic coordinators identified that some of the students' suggestions are more realistic than others. Students had a positive attitude towards assessment, but emphasised the need for educators to highlight the relevance of assessment to clinical practice.

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Section: Relevance -From Learning For Examinations To Learning To Be supporting

confidence: 87%

Exploring the Impact of Assessment on Medical Students’ Learning

Preston

Gratani

Owens

et al. 2019

Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This included factors like feedback timeliness, tone, and valence. Timeliness was a particularly prominent theme across many studies (e.g., Lynam and Cachia [28]), many times with participants noting that timely feedback was more likely to be received and acted upon. Additionally, feedback was evaluated based on the individual providing it (instructor, tutor, peer-with instructor feedback being preferred) as well as the tone and language chosen to convey the message (which was noted by participants as having an impact on usability and reception).…”

Section: Feedback Deliverymentioning

confidence: 99%

Quality of Feedback in Higher Education: A Review of Literature

2020

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In raising the standards for professional educators, higher educators must be prepared to provide the highest quality feedback on student performance and work products toward improved outcomes. This review of the literature examined the major findings of 70 quantitative, mixed methods, or qualitative studies found in higher education journals across a range of disciplines. Multiple recommendations and results for feedback emerged which fall into the categories described by Susan Brookhart. This review found research for each of Brookhart’s categories, with results indicating differences between the perceptions of adherence to sound feedback practices versus the reality of implementation, the potential for innovative tool use, and a disagreement about the effectiveness of peers for providing effective feedback. Indicators for quality within the research confirmed the importance of commonly accepted standards such as positivity, specificity, timeliness, and encouraging active student participation. Additionally, trends and themes indicated a need for the consistent implementation of the feedback exchange process and flexibility to account for student input/preferences. Greater consistency toward the application of these quality indicators should be undertaken when determining the quality of higher education feedback for preservice teachers prior to undertaking summative licensure assessments.

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“…Practical tasks with clearly communicated usefulness are more effective in preparing students for employment, rather than traditional assessment methods, such as examinations (Keppell & Carless, 2006). Students perceive assessments as beneficial to their learning if they are explicitly aware of how they build on their current skill set and their relevance to their future career (Lynam & Cachia, 2017). This therefore leads to the understanding that students are more likely to engage in the learning process if they can relate the set assignments to their employment ambitions.…”

Section: Factors Influencing Academic Successmentioning

confidence: 99%

Academic success: Is it just about the grades?

Cachia

Lynam

Stock

2018

Higher Education Pedagogies

Self Cite

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Researchers examining academic success often quantify it in terms of assessment grades. This assumption is questioned here by considering the students' understanding of academic success. The presented study aimed to identify students' views of its definition and the factors they perceive as crucial in attaining it. Sixteen undergraduate Psychology students at a modern university in London, United Kingdom took part in one of three focus groups. Participants defined academic success as: the accomplishment of the learning process; gaining subject knowledge; and developing employability skills. Thematic analysis of the collected data resulted in two themes: intrinsic factors, including motivation, self-directed learning and personal skills; and extrinsic factors, including teaching content and the student support structure. The discussion of these results at the conference led to the conclusion that achieving academic success and minimising skill gaps for employability post qualification requires the intrinsic elements to be addressed as an integral part of the compulsory programme rather than presented as optional add-ons. VignetteA second-year student requested an urgent appointment for academic advice from her personal tutor. She demanded an explanation of how the degree classification was calculated to make sure she pitched her efforts correctly for the upcoming assessments, in order to achieve the final grade that she had in mind (which was a 2:1). Her reasoning was that in order to maximise her employability, it was crucial to balance her time between achieving the required grade and gaining the appropriate level of work experience.

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Students’ perceptions of the role of assessments at higher education

Cited by 53 publications

References 23 publications

Exploring the Impact of Assessment on Medical Students’ Learning

Exploring the Impact of Assessment on Medical Students’ Learning

Quality of Feedback in Higher Education: A Review of Literature

Academic success: Is it just about the grades?

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