Course coordinator
Professor Nan Bahr
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2024 (15/07/2024 - 18/11/2024)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Education School
This course engages pre-service teachers in an overview and analysis of recent developments in research about assessment. This will further pre-service teacher understanding about the relationship between assessment, reporting, planning, teaching and learning. Consideration will be given to a range of approaches to assess student learning, including the use of formative assessment to inform planning of effective learning sequences and the interpretation of student assessment data to inform and modify teaching and improve student outcomes. Pre-service teachers will be provided with opportunities to apply contemporary theory. Through a focus on strategies to support consistent and comparable assessment judgements, utilising criteria and standards rubrics linked to learning objectives and moderation processes, pre-service teachers will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills to practice by identifying assessment strategies that inform planning and teaching. Strategies for providing feedback to students will be addressed. Pre-service teachers will also engage with a range of strategies for reporting to parents/carers and will investigate the value of and approaches to maintaining student records.
Note: This course commences 1 week before standard Semester 2 classes.
This course is designed as a capstone experience in the Master of Teaching program. The course enablesﾠstudents to plan, act and reflect as professionals in relation to issues of assessment. The course includesﾠan overview of assessment principles and practicesﾠin the context of your future work as a teacher who will be expected toﾠact professionally, ethically and collegially to improve student learning and educational outcomes. Prior toﾠthe professional experience placement, students will have the opportunity to consider assessment and grading issues related to assessment tasks in their specific curriculum area.ﾠAfter the professional experience placement, students will have the opportunity to consider assessment and moderation issues related to specific samples of student work. During theﾠcourse, students will develop and demonstrate understandings of assessment practices and processes required of beginning teachers. If you have any queries at any time during the course, do not hesitate to contact your tutor, or the course lecturer.
Course requirements
Restrictions
Restricted to MTeach (Sec) students.
Jointly taught details
This course is jointly-taught with:
This is taught jointly with EDUC4607 in from the Bachelor of Education (Primary) program.
Course contact
Lecturer
Professor Nan Bahr
Course staff
Tutor
Mr Ricky Lee
Mr Muhammad Musofer
Ms Anna Sibthorpe
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Aims and outcomes
The course aims to develop students’ knowledge and understanding of recent developments in research about assessment, and to apply this knowledge to assessment tasks and samplesﾠrelevant to their professional growth and development. The course also aims to develop students’ understanding of and skills in analysis and synthesis of complex information, including relevant theoretical and conceptual information and literature. Application of knowledge and skills will be demonstrated through critique of sample assessment items, and evidence of student learning. Students’ skills in written communication will be developed.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Demonstrate comprehensive and well-founded knowledge and understanding of current trends and expectations related to assessment, and the nature of the full range of assessment strategies and approaches and how assessment and reporting inform planning of effective learning and teaching.
LO2.
Demonstrate application of knowledge and skills to practice through the design of criteria and standards rubrics linked to learning objectives, and use of moderation practices to support consistent and comparable judgments of student learning.
LO3.
Demonstrate understanding of a range of strategies for providing timely and appropriate feedback to students, reporting to students and parents/carers, and purpose of maintaining effective records of student achievement.
LO4.
Demonstrate critical reflection on nature and use of large-scale systemic assessment data and capacity to interpret such data to inform effective planning and teaching.
LO5.
Demonstrate clear, fluent, and coherent communication skills consistent with personal, professional and academic conventions.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay/ Critique | Task 1: Analysing assessment tasks | 40% 1500 words |
5/08/2024 2:00 pm |
| Practical/ Demonstration |
Task 2: Moderation Meeting - Hurdle Assessment
|
Pass/Fail |
8/10/2024 - 11/10/2024
Assessment will be conducted in tutorials. |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Task 3: Practice-Based Research Report | 60% 3000-3500 words |
28/10/2024 2:00 pm |
A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.
Assessment details
Task 1: Analysing assessment tasks
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 40% 1500 words
- Due date
5/08/2024 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L05
Task description
Length
1500 words (+/- 10%)
Context
In order to provide the conditions for students to learn and improve, teachers need to know how to analyse and develop effective assessment tasks. This is an integral component of productive teaching and learning.
Task
In tutorials, you have had discussions about a variety of different samples of assessment tasks and discussed the nature and validity of assessment practices more broadly. Drawing upon a sample secondary school assessment task collected during a previous practicum (or from an alternative source e.g. QCAA website) and ‘validation’ discussions about assessment practices more broadly, write an essay that analyses the nature and effectiveness of this assessment task. You will also need to draw upon relevant literature on the nature of assessment more broadly and specific assessment setting practices, including in relation to standards and criteria, to critique the nature of the assessment item.
This task is informed by current trends and expectations of assessment in secondary schools, and involves identifying, describing and explaining the common types of assessment strategies used in schools, including informal, formal, diagnostic, formative and summative.
Australian Professional Standards for Teachers:
Standard
Graduate level
5.1 Assess student learning
Demonstrate understanding of assessment strategies, including informal and formal, diagnostic, formative and summative approaches to assess student learning.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.
Task 2: Moderation Meeting - Hurdle Assessment
- Hurdle
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance
- Category
- Practical/ Demonstration
- Weight
- Pass/Fail
- Due date
8/10/2024 - 11/10/2024
Assessment will be conducted in tutorials.
- Learning outcomes
- L03, L05
Task description
Moderation meeting [in tutorials] throughout the semester.
In tutorials, pre-service teachers will moderate an assessment rubric (criteria sheet) and task sheet as a group, using a set of guiding questions (protocal for analysing assessment tasks). They will then present the key responses to the questions from their moderation meeting in their tutorial. Pre-service teachers will then individually grade one piece of student work, and then participate in a group moderation meeting about that assessment piece. This moderation will also follow a set of guiding questions. They will then present the key responses to the questions in their tutorial.
Individual Reflection:
Due Date: Within one week from completion of moderation meeting
After their final moderation presentation, pre-service teachers will develop and submit a one page reflection on what they have learned about assessment moderation processes to date, and the importance of these processes in relation to developing not only effective assessment tasks, but also student learning. This reflection will also include consideration of the reporting strategies that may be used to inform parents and/or caregivers about the student’s progress to-date, and a rationale for why it is important to maintain effective records of student achievement.
Australian Professional Standards for Teachers:
Focus
Descriptor
5.3 Make consistent and comparable judgments
Demonstrate understanding of assessment moderation and its application to support consistent and comparable judgements of student learning.
5.5 Report on student achievement
Demonstrate understanding of a range of strategies for reporting to students and parents/carers and the purpose of keeping accurate and reliable records of student achievement.
Hurdle requirements
Assessment will be conducted in tutorials.Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
Task 3: Practice-Based Research Report
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 60% 3000-3500 words
- Due date
28/10/2024 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05
Task description
Practice-based research report: Analysing, moderating and using student feedback (data)
Context
Teachers are expected to analyse, moderate and use student assessment data to inform their teaching and learning practices, and they need to be able to do this skillfully. As a nascent teacher (who will soon be graduating), this means being able to:
(a) analyse student assessment data (evidence of student learning)
(b) participate in professional dialogue to moderate evidence of student learning, and feedback; and
(c) integrate your understanding of student assessment data (evidence of student learning) to inform your classroom teaching practices.
However, you are not doing this in a vacuum; there is a plethora of professional and research literature on assessment practices and data more broadly; and in relation to school settings, to which you can refer to assist with such work.
Task
This assignment will take the form of a practice-based research report, in which you will take a sample of student assessment and provide evidence about how you have:
(a) analysed this student’s work sample (assessment data/evidence of student learning);
(b) outlined the nature of the feedback that will need to be provided to the student. This is a 2-step process in which you independently identify this feedback, and then engage in a moderation task (with 1 or more colleagues [in Task 2]) to develop a better understanding of the nature of the feedback that should be provided to the student;
(c) outline the nature of the learning sequences and lessons you would then need to provide the student to enable them to address their learning needs, as identified in the feedback.
For each stage of this process, you need to engage with and critically analyse relevant professional and academic literature about assessment data/evidence of student learning, and draw upon professional discussions with your colleagues about how to provide relevant assessment feedback to students. You will also need to draw upon relevant literature relating to moderation of assessment, and how these practices of analysing students’ work and moderating feedback can inform curriculum development (learning sequences and lesson plans).
Use the following subheadings in your final report (or develop your own in light of the nature of the task):
1. Analysing the student work sample
2. Valuing and validating student moderation
3. Developing learning sequences and lessons
Tip:
- Section 1 should also include reflections upon the nature of the student sample as a form of data in relation to other forms of data (including large scale standardized data), and literature on these varied forms of data.
- Section 2 is more explicitly focuse
Submission guidelines
Submission via Turnitin
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect an absence of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect a minimal level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect a developing level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect a functional level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect a proficient level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect an advanced level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Research report and essay reflect an exceptional level of understanding, as per criteria sheet. |
Additional course grading information
Assignment 1 is weighted 40% for the course. Assignment 3ﾠis weighted 60% for the course. These weightings will be used to finalise grades for the course. For example,ﾠif a student receives a 4 for for Assignment 1 and a 5 for Assignment 3, the following calculation will apply: 0.4 x 4 + 0.6 x 5 = 1.6 + 3 = 4.6.
In the case where the final grade is 0.5 or above, the grade will be rounded up to the nearest whole number (e.g. 5.5 would become 6). In the case where the final grade is 0.49 or below, the grade will be rounded down to the nearest whole number (e.g. 6.49 would become 6).
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
The following applies to all assessments in this course:
Marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the 'Assessment' folder in Blackboard for this course.
Release of assessment item marks and feedback
In addition to the grade awarded, feedback will be provided in a timely manner to enable students to apply the feedback to further tasks within the course or program and/or plan for supplementary assessment, requests for re-mark, or re-enrolment. However, as per UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Policy, results for the final assessment item are to be released only after the final grade for the course has been released. Time frames for applications for assessment re-mark are indicated under the Assessment Procedure.
Re-mark policy
After each assessable item, students will be given the opportunity to view their assessment and so satisfy themselves that a marking or administrative error has not occurred. The formal process of querying a course result (requesting a remark on academic grounds) is set out in the UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Procedure.
Use of generative AI to support or inform assessment
Artificial Intelligence (AI) provides emerging tools that may support students in completing this assessment task. Students may appropriately use AI in completing this assessment task. Students must clearly reference any use of AI in each instance.
A failure to reference generative AI use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (15 Jul - 21 Jul) |
Lecture |
Lecture 1 - Introduction Nature of Assessment; Writing Assessment Learning outcomes: L01 |
Week 2 (22 Jul - 28 Jul) |
Lecture |
Lecture 2 Making judgements Learning outcomes: L02, L03, L05 |
Week 3 (29 Jul - 04 Aug) |
Lecture |
Lecture 3 The Australian Curriculum and QCAA Assessment Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Multiple weeks From Week 4 To Week 9 |
Practical |
Practicum No classes scheduled while undertaking professional experience (placement) in an accompanying course |
Week 10 (16 Sep - 22 Sep) |
Lecture |
Lecture 4 Moderation, Calibration and Written Feedback Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05 |
Mid Sem break (23 Sep - 29 Sep) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Vacation Mid semester break |
Week 11 (30 Sep - 06 Oct) |
Lecture |
Lecture 5 Reporting to students and parents/carers Learning outcomes: L03 |
Week 12 (07 Oct - 13 Oct) |
Lecture |
Lecture 6 Assessment Data Processes Learning outcomes: L04 |
Week 13 (14 Oct - 20 Oct) |
Lecture |
Lecture 7 Addressing student learning needs Learning outcomes: L01, L03, L04 |
Week 14 (21 Oct - 27 Oct) |
Lecture |
Lecture 8 Preparing students for external examination Learning outcomes: L01 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.