Assessment & Feedback - Inclusive Education Framework

Assessment and Feedback

Personal practice

Programme Team

Senior Leader

Assessment is a major driver of student learning but is also a source of considerable anxiety for many students. Poorly designed assessment strategies can act as a barrier to learning, and potentially reinforce educational inequalities. Inclusive assessment goes beyond the provision of reasonable adjustments for individual students with disabilities, towards a model where flexibility of assessment is available for all (Waterfield and West, 2006). Inclusive pedagogy also requires effective use of feedback and feedforward. All students benefit from having a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of their work and be able to identify how to improve their performance in future assignments. Inclusive assessment and feedback processes are also mindful of student anxieties and provide constructive support for students in demonstrating their learning (Winstone and Nash, 2016).

An Inclusive Assessment and Feedback approach will:

Have coherent programme level design.

All students benefit from seeing connections between assessments in different modules. Earlier years of the programme will prepare students effectively for their final assessments, ideally with no novel assessment types introduced in the final year.

Be mindful of assessment burden.

Inclusive programme teams will coordinate assessments so that students are not over-assessed. This prevents academic staff and students from facing unmanageable workloads. Consideration at programme level should prevent deadline clashes with other significant taught components, eg placements or field trips.

Consider student anxieties around assessment.

Most students will face some level of stress relating to assessments but this may be particularly acute for some. Programme teams should adopt a supportive culture around assessment, provide clear guidance, and offer opportunities for students to voice concerns. Effective use of formative assessment may also reduce student anxiety.

Consider student anxieties around assessment.

Design out the need for individual reasonable adjustments wherever possible.

There can often be flexibility in how students demonstrate their knowledge and understanding. This is not necessarily incompatible with standards defined by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) or Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRBs). That flexibility can be used to design out individual reasonable adjustments. For example, students needing to demonstrate effective communication could have a choice of format (e.g. podcast, infographic, blog), enabling students to identify the most appropriate medium for their individual capabilities and needs.

Give students authentic opportunities to demonstrate their skills, knowledge and self-awareness.

When assessments are embedded in ‘real world’ scenarios, students are more motivated by seeing the connections between their learning and the wider context and their future career.

Give students a diversity of assessment modes.

An inclusive assessment portfolio will include a balanced variety of formats relevant to the discipline, so all students have opportunities to play to their strengths.

Be marked using clear, fair and transparent criteria.

Inclusive marking criteria will not disproportionately penalise students for mistakes in written English or referencing, except where this is required by e.g. professional, statutory and regulatory bodies. Weighted rubrics that clearly specify requirements may be more objective and inclusive than holistic marking criteria.

Use feedback constructively to promote student learning.

Feedback that students receive can either build or undermine academic confidence and success. Students may find large amounts of feedback overwhelming and so benefit from targeted and focussed guidance. Feedback should be clearly communicated, constructive and timely. This may be offered in different formats, e.g. written, verbal or recorded. Opportunities to discuss feedback should be built into programme delivery.