Developing assessment guidelines in higher education

The Faculty of Education at the University of Malta has just introduced a set of Assessment Guidelines (see Chetcuti, 2006). These guidelines offer lecturers in the Faculty of Education a view of the traditional, creative and innovative assessment practices which are in use in the Faculty of Education. The main aim is to try and ensure that lecturers within the Faculty of Education provide assessment which is fair, valid, reliable, efficient and effective for all student teachers. This report is a review of the project including the major principles of assessment for learning which form the basis of the document, the contents of the guidelines and the lessons learnt in the process of developing the guidelines. While the development of the guidelines is specific to the Maltese context, the lessons learnt in the process can easily apply to other situations and can be of use to anyone interested in bringing about change in assessment practices in higher education.peer-reviewe

The SForD-TP Project : promoting school-based mentoring in initial teacher education at the University of Malta

The first instances of mentoring in the teaching profession – which eventually grew to cover all phases of teacher education (i.e., preservice, induction and continued professional development) – occurred in the early 1970s in the United States, followed closely by Europe (Kerry & Shelton Mayes, 1995). In the UK, in particular, the rapid growth in the early 1990s of school-based mentoring by teachers during initial teacher education (ITE) was propelled by a political decision to move the preparation of future teachers away from higher education (HE) and locate it in schools (Kerry & Shelton Mayes, 1995). Roughly at that time, Sultana (1995) made a plea to introduce mentoring in the ITE programmes organised by the Faculty of Education at the University of Malta. His intention, however, was to recognise and utilise the situational expertise of teachers in schools rather than to eliminate ITE from HE (see Sultana, 1995). There was in fact one notable attempt in the early 1990s to move the Faculty in this direction with a mentoring programme designed for students specializing in primary education, but in spite of the largely positive results the initiative met a natural death when the requested support structures to sustain this programme failed to materialize (see Azzopardi & Bonnici, 2000). Since then, to the best of our knowledge, the Faculty has effectively continued to marginalize or ignore what skilled and competent personnel in schools have to offer in the preparation of future teachers. That is until very recently.peer-reviewe

Current assessment practices in schools in Malta and Gozo - a research project

• As part of its action plan, the Educational Assessment Focus Group carried out a survey on current assessment practices in schools in Malta and Gozo. Two complementary research tools were used to collect the data for this project. All Heads of Schools were invited to be interviewed and fill in a questionnaire. In total, 62% of the schools (119 / 191) collaborated in the interview process and 52% (98 / 191) returned the completed questionnaire. • In the year 2002, only 24.5% of the schools that participated in the survey (24 / 98) said that they have an assessment policy document in their school. The survey responses indicated that that several approaches have been used in formulating this document. • The majority of schools that responded to the questionnaire, with the exception of three, answered the question on current assessment practices. Overall, the data showthat the range of urrent assessment practices in schools is wide and varied. These practices are generally formative or summative and relate to ways of collectinginformation and ways of recording and reporting information to students and parents/guardians. Annual tests and examinations, half yearly tests and examinations, the correction of class and home work and classroom-based tests are the most common ways of collection information whereas the most common practices related to record keeping are recording information to pass on to parents/guardians, filling in the cumulative record cards and using merit cards and certificates of merit. Overall, record keeping is not popular in Maltese schools. • The schools reported that a variety of modes are used to give students feedback about their progress. It is common practice for teachers in Malta to mark and/or correct student work, whether the work in question is class work, home work or tests. It is also common for teachers to writecomments on the students’ exercise books and test papers. This form of individualised feedback is sometimes used in conjunction with, replaces or is replaced by short interactions between the teacher and the student. Other common practices are class discussion once the work is returned to the students and sending reports home after the half yearly and annual tests and examinations. All school representatives reported that most of the feedback about children’s progress is given to parents/guardians orally during Parents’ Day/s. All schools hold at least one Parents’ Day but it is quite common for schools to have two such days. • The data relating to successful assessment practices indicated that current practices are still very much embedded within a traditional culture of examinations and testing and assessment is used for summative purposes. The majority of the participants felt that examinations and tests were still the most effective and reliable method of collecting information regarding student progress. Despite this emphasis on traditional assessment practices, however, most of the participants did agree that it was also important to make use of formative assessment in order to help and support the learning process. • The schools’ current concerns regarding assessment practices range from practical issues regarding time constraints, inadequate recording systems and the need for staff training to more philosophical concerns such as the impact of examinations on students and parents, to issues regarding the reliability and validity of our assessment practices and the pressing need for levels of achievement and assessment criteria to ensure fair and valid means of recording and reporting on student progress. • The participants focused on a limited range of innovative practices that they intend to implement in their schools in the near future. All of the innovations form part of the new national minimum curriculum.peer-reviewe

Assessing the field placement in initial teacher education : finding the balance between formative and summative assessment

The research study reported in this paper explores the issues and challenges faced by teacher educators when assessing student-teachers during their field placement. The key research question is: What are the issues and challenges faced by teacher educators and university administrators in relation to the formative and summative assessment of student-teachers during their field placement in Initial Teacher Education? The research tries to address this question by drawing on qualitative data from interviews with key academics and administrators at the University of Malta. The data from the interviews suggests that finding a balance within a university setting between the formative and summative aspects of assessment can create a potential conflict. This results in teacher educators focusing more on administrative demands for accountability and standards through summative assessment (also known as ‘assessment of learning’) rather than on the learning process through formative assessment (also known as ‘assessment for learning’). The authors challenge this current view and, using examples from good practice, construct a model of assessment for the field placement that tries to improve the balance between formative and summative assessment.peer-reviewe

Portfolios in environmental education : the TEPEE project

Teaching and assessment in Environmental Education (EE) is rather complex because it needs to address the learners’ ability to ask questions, solve problems, and develop positive values. Portfolio assessment is a holistic way to evaluate the growth and development of skills and values in EE by providing a cumulative record of work carried out by students in a variety of contexts and allowing students to reflect on the process of how their views and values change. The main aim of this paper was to discuss the process of the development and implementation of a European Portfolio for Environmental Education by TEPEE (Towards a European Portfolio for Environmental Education) Network, within seven European countries. The paper narrates the development and implementation of EPEE through the eyes of the TEPEE scientific committee coming from the seven partner countries. Their views about the advantages and disadvantages of the use of portfolios within the context of EE were collected by means of questionnaires using open-ended questions. The results of the study suggest that the main advantage of using portfolio assessment is that it provides a holistic picture of the learning and growth of students in different contexts and situations. The major asset was the enthusiasm and motivation it raised among the teachers using it. The major difficulty was trying to change the assessment culture of teachers who were used to more traditional forms of assessment.peer-reviewe

“They labeled me ignorant” : narratives of Maltese youth with dyslexia on national examinations

Examinations have a significant impact on well-being as they provide qualifications for entry into further education and employment. Research suggests that students with dyslexia experience greater challenges than their counterparts. This article explored the views of eight students with dyslexia, the challenges they face, and what they believe could make national examinations “fairer.” The Maltese educational system has a Secondary Education Certificate (SEC) at the end of compulsory education (16 years) and Matriculation (MATSEC) for postsecondary schooling (18 years). Narrative interviews and a thematic approach using discourse analysis presented participants’ voices in prose and strophes. Narratives evidence difficulties and abilities. Students criticized the unnecessary examination stress and anxiety caused by misunderstanding and lack of knowledge about dyslexia. Youth referred to “fairness” of examinations, which they equated with “sameness.” They believe that examinations could be fairer by being given compensatory measures without compromising the examinations’ objectives.peer-reviewe

Teacher education matters : transforming lives…Transforming schools

This study narrates the views of six students with a profile of dyslexia regarding examinations. Following current trends in educational research, the study tried to give voice to the students themselves. In-depth interviews were carried out to find out what the students thought about examinations, the challenges they faced and how they thought examinations could be made Jairer.' Results reported in this chapter suggest that dyslexic students experience real challenges when sitting for examinations due to their dyslexic profile; the time constraints of examinations and the stress and anxiety caused by their perceived inability to achieve at par with their peers. The students believed that these challenges hindered their performance in examinations. At the same time they hoped for a 'fairer' examinations system based on their involvement in the decision-making process that took into consideration their individual needs and we/I-being.peer-reviewe

The Inhalation Characteristics of Patients When They Use Different Dry Powder Inhalers

Background: The characteristics of each inhalation maneuver when patients use dry powder inhalers (DPIs) are important, because they control the quality of the emitted dose. Methods: We have measured the inhalation profiles of asthmatic children [CHILD; n=16, mean forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1) 79% predicted], asthmatic adults (ADULT; n=53, mean predicted FEV1 72%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD; n=29, mean predicted FEV1 42%) patients when they inhaled through an Aerolizer, Diskus, Turbuhaler, and Easyhaler using their “real-life” DPI inhalation technique. These are low-, medium-, medium/high-, and high-resistance DPIs, respectively. The inhalation flow against time was recorded to provide the peak inhalation flow (PIF; in L/min), the maximum pressure change (ΔP; in kPa), acceleration rates (ACCEL; in kPa/sec), time to maximum inhalation, the length of each inhalation (in sec), and the inhalation volume (IV; in liters) of each inhalation maneuver. Results: PIF, ΔP, and ACCEL values were consistent with the order of the inhaler's resistance. For each device, the inhalation characteristics were in the order ADULT>COPD>CHILD for PIF, ΔP, and ACCEL (p4 L and ΔP >4 kPa. Conclusion: The large variability of these inhalation characteristics and their range highlights that if inhalation profiles were used with compendial in vitro dose emission measurements, then the results would provide useful information about the dose patients inhale during routine use. The inhalation characteristics highlight that adults with asthma have greater inspiratory capacity than patients with COPD, whereas children with asthma have the lowest. The significance of the inhaled volume to empty doses from each device requires investigation

Modelling of the Wireless Propagation Characteristics inside Aircraft

Advances in wireless communications technology and more sophisticated portable devices have led to a drastic increase in wireless services and applications. This advancement was made possible through hardware improvements which allow more functions to be implemented in smaller sized devices. The demand for more wireless services has pushed the industry and the research community to increase the communication data rates, connectivity, and availability. The increase in the user base has also brought a decrease in the cost of the services. Although wireless access is becoming available in all public places around the world, this is still not the case for the air passengers who are cut off from wireless services during the duration of the flight. Deployment of wireless technology inside aircraft is still a hot issue due to uncertainties related to interference. Yet, the European Commission has prepared the legal framework for wireless connectivity inside aircraft in April 2008 (Commission, 2008). Aircraft manufacturers will benefit from this technology by exploiting wireless networks to reduce the cable complexity, hence the weight of the aircraft, and by providing new in-flight services, such as online passenger meal selection, service request and video on demand. On the other hand, provisioning of wireless service during flight would profit passengers, since they gain seamless access to common wireless services, such as phone, Internet, and multimedia communications.peer-reviewe

Assessment policy including benchmarking

This workshop report describes the discussion by the Working Group on Assessment and Benchmarking on the topic of teachers being involved in the process of research, decision making, and implementation. The report suggests that the result of this collaboration is the implementation of new assessment practices, which can benefit all students.peer-reviewe