This document discusses inclusive assessment in higher education. It begins by outlining the rationale for inclusive assessment, including improving student learning, evaluation scores, and compliance with disability requirements. It then reviews common assessment practices and explores a variety of inclusive assessment methods like performance, group projects, and peer review. The document emphasizes that inclusive assessment should be accessible to all students without compromising rigor. It provides tips for inclusive design, such as aligning assessments to learning outcomes and using formative feedback. Overall, the document advocates for inclusive assessment as a way to benefit both students and faculty.

1. Inclusive Assessment
Pollyanna Magne: Educational Developer, Plymouth University

2. Judith Waterfield
Bob West

3. Magne PJ (2012)
'Assessment equivalence
frameworks: to be or not to
be?'
Educational Developments
1 (13), pp 25 – 28
Available at
http://www.seda.ac.uk/resources/file
s/publications_128_Ed%20Devs%2
013.1%20v4%20FINAL.pdf

4. In this session we will:
 identify the rationale for inclusive assessment
 review current assessment practice
 explore a variety of inclusive assessment methods
 reduce the need for modified assessments through
inclusive assessment
. . . and I might also mention ‘authentic assessment’

5. The premise of this session . . .
Assessment is a significant driver of student learning
(Brown and Knight, 1994; Ramsden, 1992; O’Donovan et al, 2000)
Therefore assessment needs to,
‘Motivate and challenge the learner, stimulate thinking
and provide feedback.’
(Price, Rust, O’Donovan and Handley, 2012: 9)
Review of National Student Survey results in the UK
indicates that universities ‘could do better’ when it comes
to assessment and feedback
(Magne, 2012: 28)

6. Inclusive Assessment:
Why now ?
 Evaluation / league table scores for assessment &
feedback
 Student voice
 Student retention through regular assessment &
feedback (Assessment for learning )
 Numbers of disabled students& MAP requirements
 Reports of inconsistent assessment practice
 Increase in complaints , appeals & settlements

7. TESTA project
Too much assessment
 does not significantly alter overall result
 creates additional work & stress for students and for
staff
Too many forms of assessment do not encourage
practice and development.
(Jessop, Hakim, & Gibbs, 2011)
What the research says . . .
TESTA: Transforming the Experience of Students through Assessment

8. What the research says . . .
Traditional assessment practices that were once
dominated by the unseen examination and the
standard essay…have proved unable to capture the
range and nature of the diverse learning outcomes
now sought from courses.” (Boud,2006)

9. What is inclusive assessment?
Inclusive assessment refers to the design and use of
fair and effective assessment methods and practices
that enable all students to demonstrate to their full
potential what they know, understand and can do
(Hockings, 2010, p.2)

10. Contingent approach
offers provision of special arrangements or
adjustments within existing systems.
Alternative approach
offers different assessment methods as a bolt-on for a
minority of disabled students.
Inclusive approach
is designed to ensure accessibility for all students and
reduces the need for Modified Assessment Provision.
Waterfield J,. and West, B. (2006). SPACE Project. Plymouth: Plymouth University
Towards inclusivity

11. Inclusive does not mean ‘easier’
or ‘avoiding things’
Inclusivity can be enhanced through:
 Formative tasks
 Staging of tasks
(progressive &
building complexity)
 Feed-in
Feed-in
Set up, briefing, preparation,
practice, marking criteria
Feed-forward
Formative ‘feedback’, cues,
discussion, mid-way reviews,
peer & self feedback
Feedback
end of task,
written, verbal,
mp3, Utube,
marks/grades
Learning
Space
(P. Magne, 2012)

12. What types of assessment
are there?
Performance/ improvisation
Exhibitions
Group debate
Lab work
Simulation exercises
Development of a technical leaflet
Peer/group teach
Creation of digital resources / object / design
Game or competition
Essays, reports, reflexive journals
 Practical
 Coursework
 Exams / tests
Open book
Seen
MCQ
Short answer
PBL
Case study response
Performance
Viva
Group practical
CAA

13. Map out the assessment formats used
across your programme
Module Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
e.g. History
Module Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
1 Critical review of
two journal articles
Essay – choice of
theme
2 Unseen exam 4
short Qs, 1 essay Q
Group project and
presentation
3 Group presentation
individual summary
report
Critical review of
event using multiple
sources (essay)
4 Lit review on topic Exposition of an
artefact
5
6 Dissertation
Review template

14. ‘It’s a great mistake to be over sophisticated in exams:
it’s part of the technique not to be; one has to limit
oneself’
(Student quoted in Cox, 1975)
‘You skim over the surface, it’s just a rush job all the time’
‘You get the situation where people are not learning
anything, they’re just doing . . . enough to get through the
exam’
(Students quoted in Thomson and Falchikov, 1998)
Students’ reflections on exams

15.  to objectively measure a student’s achievements
against the learning outcomes of the module
 to assist student learning by providing appropriate
feedback on performance
 to provide a reliable and consistent basis for the
recommendation of an appropriate award’
University Assessment Regulations
often say something like . . .
‘The purposes of assessment are:
And use terms such as: reliability, validity, formative,
summative, equitable, inclusive, authentic, explicit criteria

16. Think ‘authenticity’: use assessment types
relevant to future employability prospects
these are known to motivate e.g.
What works ?
 Medicine: observed structured clinical examinations
 Navigation: navigation exercise in ship simulator
 History: produce exhibit using a range of sources to
develop display information
 Economics: examine causes for a company on the rise or
decline, and present projections
 Creative writing: exploration of three pieces on similar
topic noting style, structure and approach
 Social work: reflexive writing on critical incident

17. Use peer review: it assists student learning
and reduces marking load
Engineering course – University of
Strathclyde
 Lecturers stopped marking weekly
problem sheets (too busy)
 Students stopped doing work and
marks went down
 Periodic peer-review of problem
sheets was introduced as a course
requirement
 Peer review was formative – no
marking
 Exam marks increased to levels well
above those previously reached
when lecturers were giving feedback
(Forbes and Spence ,1991)
Law module – Leeds Met
 Traditional single essay
coursework replaced with 6
fortnightly essays
 1st 3 essays – feedback given as
model answers
 Model answers discussed in class
with peer-review of own essays
 1 of second set of 3 essays
randomly marked – no written
feedback
 Students tackled 6 topics in depth
across module
 Marking load reduced
(Gibbs, 2010)
What works ?

18.  Uses the same assessment for all students
 Provides benefits for all students (not just some)
 Reduces staff workload
 Minimises MAPs
 Uses instant resit if required to reduce the need for campus-
based summer exams
 Increases league table scores
Inclusive Assessment offers a
‘win-win’ approach:

19. Inclusive design
 Assignments are aligned to learning
outcomes & assessment criteria
 Assessment methods are authentic /work related
 MAP implications are low
 Offer progression
 Well written with clearly structured questions
 Feed-in / feed-forward / feedback
 Pre-assessment activities for students
 Inclusive examinations

20. Activity:
Using an appropriate assessment format and the
feed-in, staging approach redesign an assessment
for your programme to make it inclusive
Inclusive design

21. What’s your ‘take home plan’?
My top tips
 Build understanding of ‘inclusive rationale’
 Listen to the student voice
 Bust the myths
 Go for authenticity
 Use formative, staged assessment
 Team curriculum design
 Programme level view of assessment
 Ensure there is a win for both staff and students
 Aim to use assessment to consolidate learning

22. References
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