Learning Outcomes and Assessment - Achieving Constructive Alignment Treforest April 2016

© University of South Wales

Learning Outcomes

and Assessment -Achieving Constructive Alignment

CELT Seminar (Treforest 14/4/16)

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Richard Oelmann

Centre for Excellence in Learning and TeachingSenior Learning Technologist

Previously – taught on Primary Initial Teacher TrainingPreviously – Deputy Head Teacher


Assessment and Learning Outcomes


CELT Assessment Seminars

• Assessment for Learning at USW

• Learning Outcomes and Assessment (Achieving Constructive Alignment)

• Developing Innovative Assessment

• Delivering Effective Feedback

http://slideshare.net/RichardOelmann


Seminar Summary

Constructive alignment (Biggs, 1996, Biggs & Tang, 2011) is an outcomes-based

methodology for designing, promoting and assessing deep student learning.

It is predicated on the belief that the student constructs his or her own learning through

engaging in relevant learning activities (hence constructive). Alignment refers to what the

teacher does, which is to create appropriate learning environments. This specifically

involves selecting the most appropriate teaching and learning activities and assessment

tasks for each of the learning outcomes.

In its most rudimentary form, this selection is governed by the main verb in the outcome

statement. In a more sophisticated form, verbs in learning or curriculum objective

statements are typically used as a basis for alignment and refer to the specific steps (or

component activities) that collectively lead the students towards the outcomes (Biggs &

Tang, 2011; Jackson et al., 2003).

This session will look at how we can develop modules using the principles of

constructive alignment in order to promote good teaching and thus deep student

learning.


Why is Assessment Important?

“[A]ssessment…has a powerful influence on learning and…changes to assessment may have a greater influence on students’ learning than other changes to the curriculum. Assessment innovations are therefore needed to improve the quality of learning outcomes...” (Boud, 2006)

“students can, with difficulty,

escape from the effects of poor

teaching, they cannot (by

definition, if they want to

graduate) escape the effects of

poor assessment.” (Boud, 1995,

p.35)”


What our students say:

“Only those [tutors] who gave more novel ways

[of assessment] …would explain to us that [the

assessment] is to build up our skills etc but I

think coursework and exams are there as its

traditional, and there are no explanations

behind the questions …it’s just like, this is the

coursework, do it … no explanation at all.”

Glamorgan Year 3 LLB student


Aligning Objectives, Teaching Methods and Assessment

Learning takes place through the active behaviour

of the student: it is what he does that he learns, not

what the teacher does.Tyler, RW (1949)

Basic principles of curriculum and instruction

University of Chicago Press

Constructive Alignment of learning outcomes and

assessment is predicated on the belief that the

student constructs his or her own learning through

engaging in relevant learning activities (hence

constructive)


Aligning Objectives, Teaching Methods and Assessment

If students are to learn desired outcomes in a

reasonably effective manner, then the teacher's

fundamental task is to get students to engage in

learning activities that are likely to result in their

achieving those outcomes... It is helpful to

remember that what the student does is actually

more important in determining what is learned than

what the teacher does.Shuel, TJ (1986)

Cognitive conceptions of learning

Review of Educational research, 56, 411-436


Constructive Alignment

LO Learning

and teaching activities

Designed to meet LO

LO

Intended

Learning

Outcomes

LO Assessment

Methods

Designed to Assess LO

Biggs(1999) Teaching for Quality Learning at University, (SRHE and Open University Press,

Buckingham


Constructive Alignment


Key Decisions

First we get the objectives straight, what the students

have to do. Then we decide how to get them to do it.

Assessment serves a double purpose: it checks the

quality of learning, and for students, it defines what is to

be learned.

Biggs, JB (1999)

What the student does:Teaching for quality learning at university

Open University Press


Aligning curriculum objectives, teaching/learning activities and assessment tasks

Activity


Curriculum ObjectivesOrder the objectives below – which would be assessed as higher skills?

Rank them as A,B,C or D

• Compare

• Solve

• Understand main

ideas

• Relate to principles

• Name

• Hypothesise

• Analyse

• Explain

• Classify

• Elaborate

• Describe

• Apply to 'far' domains

• Reflect

• Cover topics a-n

• Memorise

• Generate

• Learn procedures

• Apply to 'near'

domains


Aligning curriculum objectives, teaching/learning activities and assessment tasks

Curriculum Objectives

expressed as verbs

AReflect, Hypothesise, Generate,

Apply to 'far' domains, Relate to

principles

BApply to 'near' domains

Analyse, Compare, Explain,

Solve, Understand main ideas

CElaborate, Classify, Cover topics

a-n, Describe

DLearn procedures, Name,

Memorise

Teaching/Learning

Activities

Designed to elicit desired

verbs

- Teacher controlled

- Peer controlled

- Student controlled

Assessment Tasks

Evaluate how well the

target verbs are drawn out

and used in context

The highest level of verb

to be clearly manifested

becomes the final grade


Blooms Taxonomy

BLOOM B S (ed.) (1956) Taxonomy of

Educational Objectives, the classification

of educational goals – Handbook I:

Cognitive Domain New York: McKay


Designing Curriculum Objectives

In designing curriculum objectives, it helps to use verbs

to specify the activities we want the students to perform.

These activities become the objectives.

In aligning instruction – the verbs are:

Identified in the objectives

Drawn out in the chosen teaching/learning activities

Embedded in the assessment tasks


The Nature of Understanding

Declarative knowledge – knowledge you can talk

about

Functioning knowledge – knowledge you can put

to work

In designing curriculum objectives, there is always a

tension between coverage and depth of

understanding.


Teaching/Learning activities → Forms of Learning


Assessing Student Learning

Assessment is the most important single component

in the system:

Why we assess

What we assess

How we assess

Who is involved


What is Assessment?

In higher education, ‘assessment’ describes any processes that

appraise an individual’s knowledge, understanding,

abilities or skills


USW Assessment Policy

• To introduce a standard and consistent idea across the University and a focal point to implement change

• Aim: ‘ Assessment FOR Learning’

“ to develop a learning environment which promotes the student learning experience, facilitates the acquisition of competence in a range of relevant skills and leads to increased learner autonomy.”

http://celt.southwales.ac.uk/documents/download/297/

http://celt.southwales.ac.uk/documents/download/297/


Key principles from the policy

• Principle 1: Assessment design should drive and promote effective learning

• Principle 2: Assessment is fit for purpose and methods are valid in measuring achievement against learning outcomes

• Principle 3: Requirements of assessment are clear and timely

• Principle 4: Assessment standards are best understood through active dialogue between staff and students

• Principle 5: Students should engage with assessment standards seamlessly as part of their course in order to internalise those standards and calibrate their own learning



• Principle 6: Ongoing formative feedback based on dialogue and integrated into learning and teaching develops high level learning and improves assessment prospects. Summative feedback should be timely, be aligned to the learning outcomes, and should feed forward

• Principle 7: Assessment loads must be balanced and achievable within appropriate timeframes, with a presumption towards fewer more challenging assessments

• Principle 8: Students learn in different ways, and should be challenged to do unfamiliar things, so there should be variety in assessment across a course



• Principle 9: Assessment judgements (i.e. marks/ grading/ classification) should be reliable and trusted, which involves developing shared understandings/professional judgements in course teams on assessment standards

• Principle 10: That assessment is secure

• Principle 11: That assessment is designed to minimise opportunities for academic malpractice including plagiarism

• Principle 12: That some assessment in each level is based on real life ‘live’ briefs and simulation, that take learners out of the classroom, builds confidence, motivation and skills for employability


Assessment Criteria

An assessment criterion can be defined as what a student must do to demonstrate that

the learning outcome has been achieved


Constructive Alignment Revisited

LO Learning

and teaching activities

Designed to meet LO

LO

Intended

Learning

Outcomes

LO Assessment

Methods

Designed to Assess LO

Biggs(1999) Teaching for Quality Learning at University, (SRHE and Open University Press,

Buckingham


So how do we do it?

• Redesign the learning outcome in the light of what you believe students will need to do in the assessment (iteratively)

• Try your assessment outline out on a non-specialist before sharing it with your students

• Focus of assessment must always be about the learning process of the student and not simply on content of knowledge


Need to avoid

• Hidden assessment criteria

• Assuming the students can read your mind

• Assessment where there are no apparent links to learning outcomes

• Grading based on something that is not explicit in the criteria


Marking v Assessing

A criterion-referenced qualitative approach demands

holistic assessment, using the same framework used

for formulating objectives.

Do your assessments assess coverage or

understanding?