The merits of peer group review as a component in the assessment of design and technology project work in education

With the expansion of Higher Education, a number of institutional and national initiatives have encouraged the development of flexible approaches to teaching and learning. Methods which are used for the assessment of student performance have increasingly become a focus of attention. An important aspect of these methods concerns the provision of effective and efficient strategies for delivering high quality feedback to students, communicating performance levels and supportive advice. In Technology education, a well established research strand has focused attention towards the assessment of design and technology capability, particularly linked to school based activities and examination performance. This assessment has concentrated largely on orthodox, formal methods. The work that this paper reports concerns a small scale investigation and evaluation of the technique of peer group review in the assessment of design and technology project work. A cohort of fifty first year undergraduate students of a course Industrial Design and Technology was involved in the assessment of four practical design coursework projects which they had submitted. Two particular aspects of peer group review are considered: the validity of student assessment in relation to parallel judgements made by academic staff; the perceptions which undergraduate students hold regarding the benefits and difficulties of this system of assessment. The paper seeks to identify the potential contribution that the technique of peer group review could make towards more effective and efficient assessment of design and technology project work from student and staff perspectives

The evaluation of different styles of teaching and learning in the context of design and technology education

This paper reports two elements of a small scale investigation concerning the preferences of undergraduate students in relation to elements of the teaching and learning process. The work was conducted with students who were engaged in a four year undergraduate programme of Industrial Design and Technology. Data collected from a questionnaire administered half way through the first year of the course sought to identify the styles of teaching and learning that students preferred during the early period of their transition between school and university. Subsequently, the same cohort of fifty, first year students was involved in peer review and evaluation sessions, linked to the practical design outcome and the design folio from two coursework design projects that they had completed. Following these review and evaluation exercises, data relating to the potential benefits and problems associated with the incorporation of this style of teaching and learning was collected using a group discussion and reporting technique. Positive and negative reactions of the students to their involvement in the process of design evaluation and assessment will be considered, along with how this element might be incorporated into a balanced framework of teaching and learning in technology project work

Student use of internet resources in the context of design and technology project work

This paper reports a pilot study concerning the use of Internet based resource materials amongst a group of undergraduate students. The aim of the study was to examine the extent to which students were using the Internet to support client based technology project work. In addition, the students’ perceived valuation of these resources in the context of practical project work was examined. A cohort of one hundred final year students of Industrial Design and Technology was involved in a client based design project. Data collected from seventy-one students via a questionnaire identified that all students had used the Internet facilities of the University. Subsequent to the questionnaire, interviews were held with six selected students who showed a strongly positive or negative response to using the Internet to support their project work. The paper discusses key factors influencing student engagement with this resource during the process of designing. The results indicated that most students accepted the resource was useful. Perceived barriers to its more widespread use were slow downloading of information, access to computer facilities and the cost in time and money to learn and use the software and hardware involved. The paper also highlights the need for considered design of both questionnaire and interview schedule when studying student cohorts

The development and application of an analytical tool for student appraisal of design folio work

This paper reports a small scale investigation and evaluation concerning the use of an analytical tool that has been developed as a part of an assessment framework for design projects. The system was intended to allow students to assess a number of dimensions that can be identified in design folio work. The key objective of this work was to support and encourage student learning during assessment. As a result of using this tool students were actively engaged in the process of assessment and exposed to a wider learning experience. Students used the system to examine and appraise their own design work and that of their peers. As a result of this exposure it was intended that students would develop the skills of observation and critical reflection concerning different approaches to designing. The wider objective was to develop in students a more communicative, productive and mature personal style of designing. This paper will focus on two main elements of the work: the range and diversity of dimensional assessments made by students; student response to the use of this appraisal tool in the context of learning about the practical activity of designing