[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”off” specialty=”on” _builder_version=”3.17.6″][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ specialty_columns=”4″][et_pb_row_inner admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column_inner type=”4_4″ saved_specialty_column_type=”2_3″][et_pb_post_title _builder_version=”3.17.6″ featured_placement=”above” locked=”on” \/][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″]<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy do we need Flexible Assessment?\u201d<\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n
Well, we don\u2019t.\u00a0But this is a question I\u2019ve received more than a few times since I started my role as Academic Lead for Assessment within our Flexible Learning Programme<\/a> \u2013 and it\u2019s a valid one. One that I think is worth exploring, when defining our vision for the future of assessment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n So, why don\u2019t we \u2018need\u2019 flexible assessment? Well firstly, flexibility within assessment already exists at the University of Manchester. We\u2019re not starting with a blank page, and this isn\u2019t something we need to suddenly and radically change within our assessment design and practice.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n A number of colleagues are already spearheading projects exploring different elements of flexible assessment practice across UoM. From Jenni Rose\u2019s peer-to-peer assessment project<\/a> (which empowers students to write their own feedback, using comparative judgement and making inner feedback explicit) to John Owen<\/a> (who is using blogs with public comments, and leads school wide student centred assessment practices). There\u2019s Therese Lawlor-Wright<\/a> (who flexes the context of exam assessments) and Rachel Hayes and Kurt Wilson\u2019s work<\/a> (designing and developing new software for assessment). And it\u2019s not just our colleagues leading the way either \u2013 postgrad student Krishna<\/a> has recently led national discussions on AI in Assessment with JISC.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Assessment that offers flexibility and student choice is already visible across the University.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n On a wider scale, post-pandemic, our students are more accustomed to a variety of learning contexts and communication methods. Society and industry alike are advancing in their approaches to tasks and knowledge.\u00a0<\/p>\n In line with this, flexibility in assessment for our learners needs to transition from being an \u2018add on\u2019 or a \u2018nice to have\u2019, to a core consideration for assessment design. So, while we do not \u2018need\u2019 flexible assessment, what we do need is to build in processes to address the question<\/i><\/b> of flexibility in assessment as standard \u2013 particularly when designing new, or amending existing, assessments.\u00a0<\/p>\n Who is working on Assessment at the University of Manchester?\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n My immediate response? A swathe of brilliant colleagues!\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n We have a number of groups working to support more flexible assessment for staff and students across UoM, to ensure our approach is joined up and comprehensive. From the Institute for Teaching and Learning<\/a>, to the Assessment for the Future Group, to the FSE Teaching Academy<\/a> , to the Manchester Institute of Education<\/a> \u2013 plus reading groups in departments and programme teams. We have a critical mass of colleagues actively working to improve and enhance assessment for our students. \u00a0<\/p>\n Within Flexible Learning, Assessment is one of our six core workstreams, and we\u2019re continuously collaborating with all of the groups above, with one shared goal: to make assessment fit for the needs of our ever-changing and diverse cohort of learners.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Within Flexible Learning, we\u2019re leading a range of projects and pilots, which seek to identify opportunities for increased flexibility for formative (continuous) and summative (periodic) assessment for flexible pathways \u2013 however, the outputs from our work will also be of use for on campus programmes and assessments.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0As Sian Yeowell in our Education Development team notes:\u00a0\u201cGood assessment, is good assessment.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0I couldn\u2019t agree more.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n So, how can we make this a reality?<\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n As part of the Flexible Learning Programme\u2019s Assessment workstream, we\u2019ve been working with the University of York, Imperial College London and UCL to explore the feasibility and practicality of optionality in assessment \u2013 in other words, student choice. As part of this we\u2019ve run surveys, focus groups and interviews with staff and students from all four institutions, and the feedback has been fascinating.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n One theme which came out time and time again was: \u201cThis sounds great in theory \u2013 but what about the reality?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n We\u2019ll be sharing the full results of all our research in November at an online event hosted by QAA<\/a>, where we\u2019ll unpack this question and more. But, luckily we\u2019re already a few steps ahead.\u00a0<\/p>\n Not only are colleagues across the University already showcasing flexibility within their teaching and assessment practices, but we\u2019re also making strides to ensure that all Manchester colleagues are singing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to assessment \u2013 particularly flexible assessment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Within the next month, we\u2019ll be sharing the first iteration of a new Assessment Toolkit: a one-stop shop for all things assessment, which will develop and grow over time, with help from you \u2013 its users. The Assessment Toolkit has been designed with staff and students, for staff and students. It aims to bring together all the resources that both colleagues and students use regarding assessment \u2013 in a digital space which is interactive, easy to navigate, and a single source of truth.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Ensuring that everyone is on the same page regarding flexibility in assessment is key to a successful shift in culture and mindset, and we hope that the Assessment Toolkit will be a first step in supporting with this. Look out for Assessment Toolkit Champions across the University, who will be happy to discuss further how this can work for you!\u00a0<\/p>\n What does the future look like for flexible assessment?<\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n To meet the goals in Our future: vision and strategic plan<\/a>, we need to offer assessment that meets the needs and expectations of lifelong learners in flexible learning contexts. This means our assessment needs to be adaptable and pertinent to traditional and non-traditional learners.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Thus, the future of flexible assessment is this: embracing the cactus of ChatGPT, designing assessment for scale and context flex, whilst still enabling us to verify skills and knowledge developed. And if none of this sounds feasible for now, look out for the Assessment Toolkit \u2013 it is being built just for you.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Dr Miriam Firth,\u00a0\u00a0Academic Lead for Assessment within the Flexible Learning Programme<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_post_nav _builder_version=”3.17.6″ prev_text=”Previous” next_text=”Next” in_same_term=”off” locked=”on” \/][et_pb_comments _builder_version=”3.17.6″ custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#ffffff” locked=”on” \/][et_pb_text admin_label=”Related posts” _builder_version=”3.17.6″ locked=”on”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_sidebar admin_label=”Subscribe” _builder_version=”3.17.6″ area=”et_pb_widget_area_3″ locked=”on” \/][et_pb_sidebar _builder_version=”3.17.6″ area=”sidebar-1″ show_border=”off” locked=”on” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dr Miriam Firth, Academic Lead for Assessment within our Flexible Learning Programme, explores why we need Flexible Assessment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":3840,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"[et_pb_section bb_built=\"1\" fullwidth=\"off\" specialty=\"on\" _builder_version=\"3.17.6\"][et_pb_column type=\"2_3\" specialty_columns=\"4\"][et_pb_row_inner admin_label=\"Row\"][et_pb_column_inner type=\"4_4\" saved_specialty_column_type=\"2_3\"][et_pb_post_title _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" featured_placement=\"above\" locked=\"on\" \/][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"3.17.6\"]\r\n\r\n When I\u2019m out and about meeting staff I hear much debate about the why, what, when and how of change in our University. I wanted to share my thoughts on this often contentious topic \u2013 and hear your views too.<\/p> Early in 2020 we will launch our University\u2019s new vision and strategic plan \u2013 Our future. In order to fulfil Our future we need to ensure that we are in a financially sustainable position so that we have the funds to invest in the new staff, facilities and infrastructure which will be needed to bring our plans to life.<\/p> Our Financial Statements<\/a> for 2018\/19, which have been published following approval by the Board of Governors, confirm that more than 95% of our \u00a31.1bn income is spent on our core goals - on our staff and our students - to deliver research, education and social responsibility; with the remainder invested in the long term sustainability of our University. You can find a summary<\/a> of the Financial Statements on StaffNet.<\/p> However, this is a testing time for UK universities, due to the many external factors that have an impact on us - current home tuition fees are falling in real terms, whilst our costs (not just pay but non-pay too) are increasing. There are further and even greater tuition fee funding risks outlined in General Election manifestos as well as a range of Brexit-related risks that could affect our operations. The Office for Students (OfS) demands that we demonstrate both value for money for our students and our financial sustainability (in the sense of being able to invest to deliver our ambitious strategy, rather than survival). There are, of course, also ongoing unresolved national issues around pay and the continuing challenges around funding pensions in the higher education sector.<\/p> Our Financial Statements show an improved operating surplus (3.7% of income compared to \u00a324.7m (2.3%) in 2017\/18), with a rise in income from tuition fees, education contracts and research. As I mentioned earlier, we re-invest the surplus we achieve each year in activity in line with our strategy. Recently our funds have been used to create some new academic and Professional Services posts; to invest in key infrastructure including IT; to invest in some new buildings like our student accommodation at Unsworth Park; to improve the student experience by funding more full-time Residential Life staff and to upgrade a range of buildings and research and teaching spaces and resources. Increasingly it is also invested in environmental sustainability and meeting our ambitious carbon targets. So even when we are making difficult decisions in some parts of the University we continue to invest our surplus.<\/p> Whilst we have reported an operating surplus, our Board of Governors expects us to deliver a much larger surplus than this (at least 5%) if we are to be sustainable in the long-term. Our strategic change programme (including IT Modernisation<\/a>, the Student Experience Programme<\/a>, and the Research Lifecycle Programme<\/a>), alongside our continuous improvement plans, will ensure that we create the financial headroom to invest in people and facilities. The strategic change programme will also enable us to embrace new technologies and new ways of doing things that better support all our staff and students to be the best that they can be.<\/p> Yes, this means that some individual roles will change. New roles (some that we haven\u2019t yet identified) will be created and some roles will no longer be required. I appreciate that this will cause some uncertainty and where that is the case we will do everything we can to support staff, but the alternative is that we never change anything. If we fail to take advantage of advances in technology and develop more joined-up ways of working we will ultimately find ourselves outdated in the eyes of future students, funders and other stakeholders. Staff want to work for a progressive and successful institution, of which they can be proud. This means we cannot stand still.<\/p> When I talk to staff and students I often hear their frustrations about how difficult it be can be to get some straightforward things done, grappling with paper-based, manual and repetitive processes, on outdated systems and infrastructure, all of which serves to increase staff workloads. Everyone wants to do a good job, but regularly feel that our world-class status is earned in spite of our internal systems and processes, not because of them.<\/p> To deliver our new vision and strategic plan we will need to embrace new opportunities and face challenges with courage and determination. That will sometimes mean we have to make tough decisions and no-one is claiming it will be easy or that mistakes will not be made along the way. But where we do have tough choices to make we will commit to implementing changes fairly and with compassion to support the wellbeing of all our colleagues.<\/p>\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_post_nav _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" prev_text=\"Previous\" next_text=\"Next\" in_same_term=\"off\" locked=\"on\" \/][et_pb_comments _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" custom_button=\"on\" button_text_color=\"#ffffff\" locked=\"on\" \/][et_pb_text admin_label=\"Related posts\" _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" locked=\"on\"]\r\n\r\n [related-posts-thumbnails]<\/p>\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=\"1_3\"][et_pb_sidebar admin_label=\"Subscribe\" _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" area=\"et_pb_widget_area_3\" locked=\"on\" \/][et_pb_sidebar _builder_version=\"3.17.6\" area=\"sidebar-1\" show_border=\"off\" locked=\"on\" \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section]","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-learning-and-students","category-teaching"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3729","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/521"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3729"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3729\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3843,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3729\/revisions\/3843"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3840"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/viewpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Related<\/h1>\n
Related posts:<\/h3>
Simon Thomson \u2013 The future of teaching and learning<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a>
Simon Merrywest: Why we're running our first harm reduction campaign<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a>
Simon Merrywest: Student Welfare<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div>
Improving our financial performance will help to deliver our ambitious future plans, but we must also increase our capacity to create the funds and time to invest in our core goals. One of the ways we can do this is by changing what we do and how we do things.<\/p>Related<\/h1>\r\n