Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons^™

Authentic Assessment Framework May 2021 Version, Jen Harvey, Derek Dodd

Reusable Resources

The TU Dublin Authentic Assessment (AA) framework was designed to be used as a general guide.for staff undertaking assessment redesigns as part of a University Initiative under the IMPACT SATLE 1 funding call.

The Framework builds on the work of Gulikers et al, (2006) and Villerarroel et al (2020) and is structured across four dimensions: ‘Realism’, ‘Cognitive challenge’, ‘metacognition’, and ‘feedback processes’.

The resource provides a set of ideas that can be used to build the four dimensions into programme based Authentic Assessment strategies and practices.

Narratives Of Creativity Among Social Care Educators In Irish Higher Education, Louisa Goss

Theses

Research on creativity in the delivery of social care highlights growing evidence of its importance for the wellbeing and quality of life of those in receipt of care, as well as benefits for the workforce. However, what is less well understood and overlooked in the literature is how creativity is conceptualised and operationalised in practice and education. This thesis attends to this gap in research from the perspective of social care educators. With the aim of deepening understanding of higher education teachers’ construction of creativity, the study explores small stories about creativity from six educators teaching into an undergraduate degree …

Components Of, And Approaches To, Effective Feedback, Sarah Gibbons, Jonathan Mccarthy, Paul Mcevoy, Patricia Mordaunt

Practitioner Research Projects

Feedback is the subject of much research and discussion in Higher Education. Nationally the focus has intensified due to reports of low levels of student satisfaction with the feedback process e.g. the Irish Survey of Student Engagement (ISSE). The focus of this report is an examination of effective feedback in undergraduate education. The importance of effective feedback (particularly for those beginning their third level education) is reflected in a project funded by the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, called the Y1Feedback project. This is aimed at increasing the quality of the third level experience and has …

Achieving Graduate Attributes Through Authentic Learning: The Case Of Student Managed Funds, Robert Dunne, James Fitzgerald, Jennifer Manning, Sean O'Reilly

Practitioner Research Projects

According to the Department of Education and Skills (2011), as cited by Murphy and Whelan (2016), there has been a growing emphasis on the importance of graduate attributes in higher education in Ireland. This not only places emphasis on the application of disciplinary specific knowledge, but also on the ‘soft skills’ highly sought by employers. By providing an authentic learning environment, higher education institutes can facilitate the development of graduate attributes while also ensuring graduates are gaining disciplinary specific knowledge. This project explores how Student Managed Funds (SMFs) represent an authentic learning experience through which students achieve a range of …

An Evaluation Case Study Investigating The Use Of Haptic Ultrasound Training Devices To Help Clinical Measurement Science Students Conceptualise Diagnostic Ultrasound, Jacinta Browne

Theses

The aim of this project was to investigate the use of a haptic ultrasound training device as a training aid to improve students’ learning, competency and confidence, in the conceptually and technically challenging area of diagnostic ultrasound imaging. The research question was investigated through the use of an evaluative case study using a mixed methods approach, with each method converging to ensure triangulation. The quantitative evaluations of the Multiple Choice Questions, psychometric manipulation test and direct observation of ultrasound scanning manipulation, demonstrated improvements of 12%, 29% and 94%, respectively between pre- and post-training performance. The qualitative evaluation of students’ confidence …

Community-Based Learning: A Primer, Zeinab Bedri, Ruairí De Fréin, Geraldine Dowling

Practitioner Research Projects

Employers are increasingly demanding graduates with industry-ready communication, decision-making, problem-solving, leadership, emotional intelligence and social ethics skills. Community-based learning (CBL) has been identified as a pedagogical approach which has tremendous potential to produce graduates with these attributes; its prominent role in the future of Ireland's third level landscape is outlined in the Irish National Strategy for Higher Education (Hunt, 2011). However, for many early-career lecturers, distilling the insights from the teaching and learning literature, and then producing a well-designed CBL module, can be an intimidating task. What is missing is a primer which presents the core ideas of CBL in …

Strategies For Enhancing The Mature Student Experience In Higher Education, John O'Carroll, Cathy Ennis, Keith Loscher, Deirdre Ryan, Niall Dixon

Practitioner Research Projects

A principle of the Irish Education system is its endorsement of equity of access to higher education for all Irish citizens. This principle has been enacted through successive government policies including the National Plan for Equity of Access to Higher Education 2015-2019 (HEA, 2015). The aim of this policy is to “ensure that the student body entering, participating in and completing higher education at all levels reflects the diversity and social mix of Ireland’s population” (p.8). Data from this plan shows that participation in higher education by the adult population has increased and that there is a potential for increasing …

Blended Learning - What Practitioners Can Learn From Moocs, Aine Whelan, Aimee Byrne, Keith Colton, Patrick Crean, Conor Mcgarrigle

Practitioner Research Projects

The rapid increase in the use of information technologies in third level education is changing the way courses are provided. Online multimedia have helped reduce the difficulties teachers face with a diversity of student profiles and a large number of students in a classroom. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) present an extreme with regard to student groups in relation to size and diversity and, therefore, many techniques and methods of overcoming the difficulties that this can present have been developed. Much of these methods can apply to online courses generally and to blended teaching environments. This study identifies four key …

Embedding A Blended Learning Approach From First Year, Suzanne Doyle, Michael Moore, Lesley Murphy, Gavin Sewell

Practitioner Research Projects

As DIT strives to enhance the transition of students into third level education, a number of priority areas were identified as part of the ongoing STEER (Student Transition, Expectations, Engagement, Retention) initiative. Ultimately the onus is on DIT to enable students to become self-directed learners. Blended learning is positioned as a solution to aid in this transition. It has been described as "the combination of traditional face-to-face teaching methods with authentic online learning activities" (Davies & Fill, 2007, p. 817). However, it is not without risk to assume that first year students have a natural affinity with blended approaches, as …

Leveraging Peer Learning For Integration Of International Students In The Classroom, Brian Barry, Waleed Abo-Hamad, Diana Carvalho E Ferreira, Niamh Gilmartin

Practitioner Research Projects

The international education sector in Ireland is currently worth approximately €1.58bn per annum, and it is projected to grow to €2.1bn per annum by 2020 (Department of Education and Skills, 2016). The academic challenges faced by international students are linked to language skills, academic background, and cultural aspects (Sadykova, 2014). Peer learning is mutually beneficial for provider and recipient, with benefits including higher academic achievement and greater productivity; increased communication skills and a greater sense of belonging; and the development of support systems (Colvin & Ashman, 2010). Domestic peers help international students to compensate for the lack of culture-specific knowledge …

Internationalsation In The Classroom, Alberto Caimo, Deirdre Duffy, Patrick Mcevoy, Brian Murphy, Grainne Scanlon

Practitioner Research Projects

Multicultural societies require multicultural universities and internationalisation is a powerful influence within higher education. Conceptual understandings of internationalisation and practical activities have evolved significantly to prepare students for global workplaces, social cohesion and personal development (Higher Education Strategy Group, 2011). Internationalisation benefits the development of interculturally competent graduates who can participate in diverse, global labour markets, yet, international students require support while adjusting to new learning environments. A student-centred approach to learning is superseding traditional pedagogy in order to support the most diverse range of learning preferences that are characteristic of multicultural groups (Vita, 2001). Educators are encouraged to expand …

An Exploration Of Fairness In The Assessment And Process Of Student Group Work, Rita Gibson, Emma Geoghegan, Oscar Macananey, Andrew Hines, Lorraine D'Arcy

Practitioner Research Projects

This project was driven by a motivation to be as fair as possible in the assessment of students' group work. Achieving fairness in assessment is a recurrent them in group project assessment literature (Nordberg, 2009). All authors of this report teach modules with group projects, and acknowledged that discrepancies often exist between a mark assigned to a group and an individual's contribution. Our aims were to (a) collectively enhance our understanding of the issues that need to be considered when assessing a group work project and (b) collectively build our confidence in approaches chosen to overcome these challenges. The findings …

Methods For Deriving Individual Marks From Group Work, Miriam Delaney, Lucy Bowe, Breiffni Fitzgerald, Peter Maccann, Christina Ryan

Practitioner Research Projects

Group assessment is a valuable teaching and learning method (Springer et al., 1999). This has been comprehensively demonstrated in the teaching and learning literature both in general (Johnson et al., 1991) and in specific contexts. This assessment practice promotes questioning, discussion and debate and encourages students to become active team players (DIT, 2013). However, when using this form of assessment, it is important to recognise that it is "individuals who graduate and gain qualifications" (Gibbs, 2009, p.4). The problem of freeloading has been identified and one of the suggested methods of reducing this is to incorporate individual assessment into the …

Facilitating Group Work: A Guide To Good Practice, Ronan Mccrea, Irene Neville, David Rickard, Ciara Walsh, David Williams

Practitioner Research Projects

Oakley et al. (2004) and Gibbs (2009) observe that owing to the extensive literature on group work, lecturers searching for a succinct guide on how to facilitate this activity effectively would find it challenging to digest such a large corpus. We extensively reviewed the literature in order to produce a quick and accessible guide for lecturers to use. It is our aspiration that this could be referred to when planning and facilitating group work projects with insights and recommendations informed by our research. Moreover, as this work draws on publications from educators in a wide range of disciplines, we expect …

Gamification To Improve First Year Engagement, John Colleran, Aoife Lloyd Mckernan, Julie Ann Naughton, Brian Vaughan

Practitioner Research Projects

The purpose of this project was to examine the role of Gamification in increasing first year student engagement within the third level educational setting. A literature review was carried out in order to explore the teaching philosophy behind gamification in education and review the quantitative and qualitative evidence regarding its use. Gamification can be broadly described as the application of gaming methods and elements in non-gaming contexts in order to improve user engagement and user experience (Deterding et al., 2011). Qualitative analysis suggests these factors result in beneficial emotional and social impacts on students, particularly in the area of increasing …

Authentic Assessment, Sinead Freeman, James Fox, Vanessa Murphy, Nicola Hughes

Practitioner Research Projects

No abstract provided.

Using Learning Preferences To Inform Module And Curriculum Design, Cormac Breen, David Mcdonnell, Paul Redmond, Aisling Mcgowan, Claire Wynne

Practitioner Research Projects

No abstract provided.