Assessing and evaluating

Assessment provides the evidence of learning achievement. It should be authentic and meaningful for students and for external stakeholders such as future employers or disciplinary associations (Boud and Associates, 2010).

Note that it has most effect when:

• used to engage students in learning that is productive
• feedback is used to actively improve student learning
• learners and teachers become responsible partners in learning and assessment
• students are inducted into the assessment practices and cultures of higher education
• assessment for learning is placed at the centre of subject and program design
• assessment for learning is a focus for staff and institutional development
• it provides inclusive and trustworthy representation of student achievement.

Deakin courses encourage students to make the most of assessment tasks. Students are engaged by authentic tasks (including simulations), asked to exercise their own judgement through self and peer assessment and to thoughtfully curate the evidence created through assessment in portfolios.

Deakin uses the validated eVALUate survey to collect students' feedback on their learning experiences within units and to help improve quality of teaching and courses.

eVALUate:

• focuses strongly on student learning, and prompts students to reflect on their own contribution to learning
• encourages students to agree or disagree, or to indicate that they are 'unable to judge' (there is no neutral option).

Other universities have implemented eVALUate, which creates the opportunity for benchmarking of similar units and courses, where appropriate and as agreed by faculties and schools.

The eVALUate survey items are designed to be meaningful to students across a wide range of disciplines in all Deakin's learning experiences: classes, seminars, practicals and others, whether on campus or in the cloud (online).

Evaluation of each unit takes only a few minutes, but the timely feedback provided is invaluable to academic staff and the University, with an opportunity for changes to be made in future offerings.

There are two parts to the survey:

1. The first part focuses on student perceptions about what has helped or hindered their achievement of unit learning outcomes.
2. The second part seeks student feedback about individual teaching effectiveness.

The eVALUate survey incorporates both quantitative and qualitative items.

The quantitative items ask students to report on their level of agreement with statements about:

• the design features of the unit and how they assist their achievement of unit learning outcomes 
• motivation and engagement in learning
• overall satisfaction 
• satisfaction with teaching.

Students select one of five responses for each item:

• strongly disagree
• disagree
• agree
• strongly agree
• unable to judge.

The qualitative items allow the students to comment on their experience of teaching. They also allow student responses on what the most helpful aspects of the unit were and suggestions about how the unit could be improved.