Digital Explanation as Assessment in University Science

Abstract

Assessments in tertiary science subjects typically assess content knowledge, and there is current need to both develop and assess different forms of knowledge and skills, such as communications and digital literacies. A digital explanation is a multimodal artefact created by students to explain science to a specified audience, which is an alternate form of assessment that has potential to develop and assess these other important forms of knowledge and skills. This research draws from perspectives in multimodality, educational semiotics and science education to gain a better understanding of digital explanation as a form of assessment in university science. Data sources include digital artefacts (n = 42), task descriptions and rubrics and pre-/post-interviews (n = 21) with students who created them as a task in a university science subject. Analysis involved identifying the range of media resources used across the data set, seeking patterns in how multiple resources were used and exploring students' perspectives on the task, including their design decisions. A more detailed look at artefacts from three different science learning contexts illustrates that students base their design decisions on the content knowledge being represented, their technical capabilities to generate them and how to engage the audience. Students enjoy this form of assessment and feel that the tasks allowed them to demonstrate different sorts of capabilities than are normally assessed in their subjects. Recommendations for instructors provide guidance for considering this sort of task in tertiary science contexts.

A Systematic Approach to Designing, Implementing, and Evaluating Learner-Generated Digital Media (LGDM) Assignments and Its Effect on Self-regulation in Tertiary Science Education

“…Current research in science education identifies the need to develop a better understanding of the context in which LGDM assessments are used, the pedagogy behind them, and the learning processes involved (Nielsen et al, 2018). The various data sources used in this study confirmed that many students use self-regulation strategies when engaging in LDGM assignments.…”

Characterising Communication of Scientific Concepts in Student-Generated Digital Products

“…For example, nutrition students constructed a digital product to suggest what a culturally appropriate diet should include for a resident in a retirement home and pre-service science teachers constructed a digital resource addressing a common secondary science misconceptions. This variety is captured in a separate paper [10]. The two products selected to develop the conceptual framework were from the same university subject, assessment and year but one achieved a higher mark.…”

“…. I learn better by researching it and figuring it out myself than just being taught it because I have to get it, because if I don't, I don't get the marks' [10].…”

“…Rather, the digital products discussed in this paper are both dynamic and standalone (can be played from beginning to end). A review of the use of the 'Dynamic Standalone Product' (DSP) in university science subjects reveals that they take on a variety of forms, with the most common including three or four main modes: image, narration, text on screen (labelling) and either animation or video [10]. Such a resource might resemble a PowerPoint presentation with overlaid narration that plays from beginning to end, or a short film which includes different scenes and role play.…”

“…In science, it is generally understood that communication skills, particularly beyond the written form, are difficult to assess. In the assessment criteria of the task that is the subject of this paper, for example, though clearly stating that the text requires technical terms to be well-defined and pharmacological concepts 'conveyed to a general audience', interviews with the creators of the resources, as analysed in a separate study, give a sense that what is valued instead is 'getting the science right' [10]. The perception is that the 'communication' part is not explicitly taught or assessed:…”