Rust, C, Price, M and O'Donovan, B Improving students' learning by developing their understanding of assessment criteria and processes. Rust, C, Price, M and O'Donovan, B (2003) Improving students' learning by developing their understanding of assessment criteria and processes. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education , 28 (2). pp. 147-164.
In recent years there has been an increasing emphasis in higher education on the explicit articulation of assessment standards and requirements-whether this emanates from calls for public accountability or based on ideas of good educational practice (Ecclestone, 2001). We argue in this paper that a single-minded focus on explicit articulation, whilst currently the dominant logic of higher education, will inevitably fall short of providing students and staff with meaningful knowledge of standards and criteria. Inherent difficulties in the explicit verbal description of standards and criteria make a compelling argument for the consideration of the role of structured processes that support the effective transfer of both explicit and tacit assessment knowledge. With reference to both empirical evidence and the literature we propose a conceptual framework for the transfer of knowledge of assessment criteria and standards that encompasses a spectrum of tacit and explicit processes, which has proven to be effective in practice in improving student performance.
In the context of a worldwide paradigm shift towards student-centred outcomes-based approaches, and at a time when many UK departments are developing learning, teaching and assessment strategies, this article reviews what the research literature says about the impact of assessment on students’ learning. It then proceeds to translate that into practical suggestions for practice with the specific intention that this should help to inform departments in the development of appropriate assessment strategies and learner-centred assessment practices which meet the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) general principles on assessment.
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