University teachers' conceptions of their current and ideal intermediate assessment: an A+ is good, but speaking your mind is better

Assessment in higher education with a transformational instead of a reproductive purpose can be a powerful way of supporting student learning. Since university teachers usually design their own assessments, it is important to investigate their conceptions of assessment. The current study focuses on...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Studies in higher education (Dorchester-on-Thames) 2019-12, Vol.44 (12), p.2223-2234
Main Authors: Day, Indira N. Z., van Blankenstein, F. M., Westenberg, P. M., Admiraal, W. F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic grading
College Faculty
Conceptions of assessment
continuous assessment
Criminology
Educational evaluation
Evaluation Methods
Feedback (Response)
Formative Evaluation
Higher education
intermediate assessment
interviews
Learning
Legal Education (Professions)
Psychological assessment
Psychology
Student Evaluation
Summative Evaluation
Teacher Attitudes
Teachers
Teaching
Test Format
Tests
university teachers
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Summary:Assessment in higher education with a transformational instead of a reproductive purpose can be a powerful way of supporting student learning. Since university teachers usually design their own assessments, it is important to investigate their conceptions of assessment. The current study focuses on teachers' conceptions of their current and ideal assessment with a focus on intermediate assessment. Thirteen teachers teaching law, psychology and criminology, reflected on their current and ideal assessment in an attempt to eliminate the influence of practical constraints on assessment practice. Results indicate that the majority of teachers have transformational conceptions of their intermediate assessment practice, and in general, their conceptions of the ideal assessment are even more transformational. This suggests that teachers' main focus for assessment is on student learning and that a lack of transformational assessments in practice may be mainly caused by external constraints.
ISSN:0307-5079
1470-174X
DOI:10.1080/03075079.2018.1483326