In moving towards a fully online assessment process, this presentation unpacks why the University for the Creative Arts took the decision to give Registry responsibility for setting up all online submissions and assessment forms (via Turnitin), and how the TEL Team acted as broker to facilitate such a marriage.
The mantra for such change was to give parity to student learning in the use of Turnitin as a formative tool and spare Faculty the pain of administration in assessment processes.
3. Turnitin – a formative tool
In 2014, after a L&T study into using Turnitin as
a formative learning tool, Academic Board
strongly advocated the use of Turnitin for
formative use all levels.
4. Turnitin Use – prior 2014
FORMATIVE
20% students – unlimited reports
36% students – 1 report before final submission
PUNITIVE
20% students – staff benefit only
NONE
24% students – staff not engaged
5. Turnitin – a standard process
Generate Originality Reports for student submissions
7. - Collecting work
- Examiner access
- Delivery of feedback
- Marks entered in SITS
- Facilitating appeals
Registry’s role in assessment
8. Standardising Turnitin’s setup enabled course
administrators to do this task.
- improved management of hand-ins
- digital repository of student work
- central mechanism to manage delivery of feedback
- evidence based repository (appeals etc.)
Registry’s interest in Turnitin
16. ‘Would never
go back to the old
method, it’s great
everything is central
and online’
(Lecturer)
‘We have always
managed Turnitin but now
Registry handle the admin
side, my staff have more time
to actually access the work’
(Course Leader)
Faculty feedback
18. I’m not bothered
how I get my feedback
really, it just needs to
be helpful and
on time
‘Having the hand-in
and feedback online is
what I would expect anyway,
saves me coming into
college and can access it
anywhere/anytime’
Student feedback
‘Online marking
is easier to read’
20. BARROW, M. (2006). Assessment and student transformation: linking character and intellect. Studies in Higher Education,
31(3), pp.357-372.
BROWN, S. (2013). Large-scale innovation and change in UK higher education. Research in Learning Technology. 21, 1-13,
Jan. ISSN: 21567069.
OSBORNE, R; DUNNE, E; FARRAND, P. (2013). Integrating technologies into "authentic" assessment design: an affordances
approach. Research in Learning Technology. 21, 1-18, Jan. 2013. ISSN: 21567069.
CANNATELLA, H. (2001). Art Assessment. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 26(4), pp.319-326
MCKIE, A. (2014). ‘Experiencing that Eureka moment! Using Turnitin as a formative learning tool to enhance students’
academic literacies’. ISBN: 978-0-9573115-1-0
PRICE, M. (2005). Assessment standards: the role of communities of practice and the scholarship of assessment. Assessment
and Evaluation in Higher Education, 30(3), pp.215-230
Bibliography
Context – how Registry became involved in handling the ‘process side’ of online assessment.
8,000 students
FE, UG and PG
2 faculties -
2 learning technologists
This came about as a result of an in-house study by Learning & Teaching into the use of Turnitin.
- This mixed use of Turnitin caused disharmony among students
- Disparity in students’ learning opportunities was clearly evident
- Mixed staff ability using Turnitin
- Sessional staff with no knowledge of Turnitin was also a problem
This disparity led to a standard Turnitin process for all written assignments
All students would be able to obtain numerous originality reports until their deadline
This disparity led to a standard Turnitin process for all written assignments
All students would be able to obtain numerous originality reports until their deadline
Registry’s role in the assessment process
- Initially This standard process allowed Registry to help course teams setup Turnitin assignments
- An improved controlled and recorded hand-ins
- ensuring UCA obtained digital copies of student work
- ability to set-up mitigating circumstances independently
A few courses were using GradeMark in various guises (feedback and marking)
Registry picked up on how GradeMark reduced work and streamlined process
The previous (Word) assessment forms were passed around
and operated outside of Turnitin
Making the administration work for Registry and Faculty cumbersome
Turnitin’s grading forms cut down on this admin
- In comparison, the reduction of processes was appealing
- Assessment forms resided with the work
- Turnitin provided a central and remote repository for assessment
- Easy access for eternal examiners
- Cuts down on printing- Fosters transparency
From helping courses with Turnitin and working closely with course teams, Registry took over the task of setting up all the Turnitin written assignments, creating and attaching the grading forms,
The option for faculty to mark hard copies was conditional for roll-out
UCA’s leadership team (all experienced markers) felt this was a vital success factor
Welcomed this move once they see the benefits
This was less so as they are not privy to background process.
But was ‘an expected’ in terms of having everything online.
Students appear oblivious of methods
More concerned with receiving quality feedback on-time and online.
Some academics felt Turnitin was clumsy and restrictive
Some preferred their word feedback forms and argued they were quicker for turning feedback around
Some academics used a spreadsheet for all feedback and in turn was given to Registry to process individual feedback forms
We are still using workarounds for these courses and things may not change until the staff do.