Activity-based teaching and assessment supports students to manage their own learning by:
- reflecting on what they know and can do, and
- making effective decisions about how to learn further on their own.
A student who can do this will be able to continue learning and improving their expertise throughout their career, even without a lecturer to guide them.
In activity-based learning and assessment students are actively involved in:
- making sense of new knowledge,
- relating new knowledge to their prior knowledge,
- reorganising their understanding so that the new knowledge is integrated, and
- using new knowledge to increase their competence.
Activity-based assessment: an example
In this activity you will read an example of an activity in which students are learning about the impact of globalisation in an economics course.
The activity is described in the table below. There are five tasks in the activity which students are asked to do. Read the tasks carefully.
| Example Activity
|
Impact of globalisation
|
| Purpose
|
Create a diagram which reflects the impact of globalisation on an industry of your choice
|
| Resources
|
|
| Tasks [60 minutes]
|
- In small groups recall what you already know about globalisation, and share your thoughts.
- Individually research and read theories of globalisation, summarising the key ideas.
- Again in small groups, share your research findings. Use the theories to agree on a definition of globalisation and unpack different aspects of globalisation.
- Individually again analyse each aspect of globalisation in relation to your chosen industry. Create a diagram which shows what you have learned.
- Write a short narrative summary to accompany the diagram, which shows your understanding of the impact of globalisation in your selected industry.
|
| Reflect, share and respond
|
- Share your final diagram and narrative with your group peers.
|
| Feedback
|
- Give and receive feedback from each other.
- Refine your work if necessary.
- Receive and read feedback from your teacher.
|
[1]
Now, in the quiz below, identify each task as assessment of learning, and/or assessment for learning and/or assessment as learning.
Click on the type of assessment for each of the following five tasks. You can click on more than one type of assessment for each task.
- In small groups recall what you already know about globalisation, and share your thoughts
- Assessment of learning
- Correct Students will identify what they already know about globalisation.
- Assessment for learning
- Correct The teacher can identify gaps and misconceptions in students’ existing knowledge and adapt her teaching accordingly.
- Assessment as learning
- Not correct There are no reflection questions built into this task to support students to think about how they learned and how they can approach learning in the future.
- Again in small groups, share your research findings. Use the theories to agree on a definition of globalisation and unpack different aspects of globalisation.
- Assessment of learning
- Correct In the discussions students will identify what they learned from the reading and research.
- Assessment for learning
- Correct In reaching agreement students will adapt their thinking to accommodate new knowledge. The teacher can identify gaps and misconceptions in students’ new knowledge and adapt her teaching accordingly.
- Assessment as learning
- Not correct There are no reflection questions built into this task to support students to think about how they learned and how they can approach learning in the future.
- Individually again analyse each aspect of globalisation in relation to your chosen industry. Create a diagram which shows what you have learned.
- Assessment of learning
- Correct Students will show what they know in the diagram.
- Assessment for learning
- Correct From the diagram the teacher can identify gaps and misconceptions. The teacher can turn assessment of learning into assessment for learning if she integrates what she learns into her future teaching.
- Assessment as learning
- Not correct There are no reflection questions built into this task to support students to think about how they learned and how they can approach learning in the future.
- Write a short narrative summary to accompany the diagram, which shows your understanding of the impact of globalisation in your selected industry.
- Assessment of learning
- Correct The narrative will describe what students have learned.
- Assessment for learning
- Correct The teacher can integrate gaps and misconceptions in her future teaching.
- Assessment as learning
- Not correct To turn this into assessment as learning, the teacher can ask students to ‘explain their thinking’.
- Give and receive feedback from each other, and your teacher, and refine your work if necessary.
- Assessment of learning
- Correct Students can check the accuracy of what they learned by comparing with peers, and based on feedback from peers and their teacher.
- Assessment for learning
- Correct Based on feedback from peers and their teacher students can adapt their work to accommodate new knowledge.
- Assessment as learning
- Correct If asked, students may be able to explain how they learned and why they adapted their thinking.
The Consolidated Formative Assessment Quiz you do at the end of this course will be based partly on this Activity Quiz. You can earn a partial completion badge if you do the Consolidated Formative Assessment Quiz.
To end off this first learning challenge, read our reflection and feedback on the quiz.
Then move on to the second learning challenge.
Our reflection and feedback on the quiz
Holistic activity-based teaching and learning can incorporate assessment for learning, assessment as learning and assessment of learning, even in a single activity.
When you introduce activities into the design of your course you provide students with opportunities to critically engage with a reading, analyse case studies, create diagrams, tables or summaries, or conduct observations and interviews. This allows them to think about and evaluate what they already know, and assess their own learning through engaging with the activity.
When students collaborate they support each other and learn from each other. Build some kind of collaboration into the activities you set. For example, ask students to create and share the products of their studies, reflect together and give each other feedback. Students who reflect, share, respond and give feedback engage in assessment of learning, assessment for learning and assessment as learning.
Your engagement with students before, during and after an activity provides important feedback, guidance and motivation. In the activities, forums and chat groups encourage students to reflect on their own thinking. Ask questions and challenge students to respond in a variety of ways.
If we begin to think about assessment in this way we can see a stronger relationship between summative and formative assessment.
Let’s explore this relationship in the next learning challenge.
Notes
- ↑ Example adapted from OER Africa: https://www.oerafrica.org/supporting-distance- learners/case-studies-using-asynchronous-communication
Activity-based teaching and assessment supports students to manage their own learning by:
A student who can do this will be able to continue learning and improving their expertise throughout their career, even without a lecturer to guide them.
In activity-based learning and assessment students are actively involved in:
Activity-based assessment: an example
In this activity you will read an example of an activity in which students are learning about the impact of globalisation in an economics course.
The activity is described in the table below. There are five tasks in the activity which students are asked to do. Read the tasks carefully.
[1]
Now, in the quiz below, identify each task as assessment of learning, and/or assessment for learning and/or assessment as learning.
Activity example quiz
Click on the type of assessment for each of the following five tasks. You can click on more than one type of assessment for each task.
The Consolidated Formative Assessment Quiz you do at the end of this course will be based partly on this Activity Quiz. You can earn a partial completion badge if you do the Consolidated Formative Assessment Quiz.
To end off this first learning challenge, read our reflection and feedback on the quiz.
Then move on to the second learning challenge.
Our reflection and feedback on the quiz
Holistic activity-based teaching and learning can incorporate assessment for learning, assessment as learning and assessment of learning, even in a single activity.
When you introduce activities into the design of your course you provide students with opportunities to critically engage with a reading, analyse case studies, create diagrams, tables or summaries, or conduct observations and interviews. This allows them to think about and evaluate what they already know, and assess their own learning through engaging with the activity.
When students collaborate they support each other and learn from each other. Build some kind of collaboration into the activities you set. For example, ask students to create and share the products of their studies, reflect together and give each other feedback. Students who reflect, share, respond and give feedback engage in assessment of learning, assessment for learning and assessment as learning.
Your engagement with students before, during and after an activity provides important feedback, guidance and motivation. In the activities, forums and chat groups encourage students to reflect on their own thinking. Ask questions and challenge students to respond in a variety of ways.
If we begin to think about assessment in this way we can see a stronger relationship between summative and formative assessment.
Let’s explore this relationship in the next learning challenge.
Notes
Project lead
Supported by
Development Partner