The Assessment Toolkit is part of a series of short, focused resources on learning and teaching, produced by the Learning & Teaching Centre. The resources are designed to help you implement effective assessment in your teaching. If you require them in a format other than those provided please contact margot.mcneill@mq.edu.au.

Implementing MQ's Assessment Policy

• Assessment checklist [PDF- 115k] 
  This checklist provides a quick overview of the requirements of the assessment policy. It was updated in December 2011 to reflect changes to the policy.

• Guide to implementation of assessment policies and procedures [PDF - 715k]
  This document has information and advice on how to implement the next assessment policy in your program or unit. It has links to the policy and suggestions on how to proceed.

• Standards-based assessment [PDF - 244k]
  The MQ Assessment policy refers to standards-based assessment. This toolkit has some suggestions for how to implement standards-based assessment in your unit. If you are interested in perspectives on standards from the higher education sector more generally, you could also explore this series of five discussion-starter videos with Dr Carol Nicoll, talking about ALTC's teaching standards project.

• Standards-based assessment presentation [Powerpoint - 3mb]
  These slides are from a presentation by Associate Professor Jan Orrell at a workshop on standards-based assessment conducted by the LTC on 6 May 2009. Listen to a podcast of Jan's presentation.

• Moderation of Assessment [PDF - 86k]
  USQ provides an excellent resource explaining the stages of moderation and procedures used for moderation of assessments.

Assessment principles

• Designing for assessment [Word - 209k] or PDF - 258k
  Effective assessment for learning begins with how you design tasks as part of your unit. This document focuses on principles of effective design and offers a range of examples.

• Writing learning outcomes [Word - 512k] or PDF - 262k
  Examining your assessment tasks provides an opportunity to check back to your unit's learning outcomes. This document contains strategies for making learning outcomes transparent for your students and providing a starting point for your assessment design.

• Setting Learning Outcomes
  Learning outcomes are the specific intentions related to what students should know, understand or be able to do. They are often described as discipline specific (related to the subject) or generic (related to certain skills such as presentation).

• Creating authentic assessment [Word - 180k] or PDF - 262k
  Real-world assessment can be one technique for engaging students. This document has suggestions for how to design authentic tasks as part of your assessment strategy.

• Interpreting and grading student learning [Word - 176k] or PDF - 225k
  Making the grading process transparent to students is important for lifelong learners. This toolkit has some tips for streamlining the grading process.

• Giving assessment feedback [Word - 168k] or PDF - 250k
  Feedback is an important part of the learning process for students. Find out how to set up tools to give feedback on your students' performance effectively and efficiently. You might also be interested in our podcast interview with Dr Samantha Murray, from The Institute for Women's Studies and Critical and Cultural Studies, talking about student feedback and engagement. There is some great information about feedback available from the University of Strathclyde.

• Using assessment rubrics [Word - 200k] or PDF - 220k
  Rubrics containing the grading criteria and standards can be helpful in guiding student efforts and also as part of moderation processes for markers. Here are examples for you to consider. Also listen to Mitch Parsell's podcast about the use of instructional rubrics to engage students in assessment.

• Using technologies to support assessment [Word - 172k] or PDF - 246k
  Adding technologies to your unit will affect the curriculum as a whole. This document has some strategies for how to implement technologies as part of your unit design. We have several podcasts related to the use of Online Discussions.

• Technology Options for Assessment
  There are many uses for technologies in assessment, ranging from streamlining administrative processes to encouraging student self-reflection. This presentation provides a brief overview of some of these options.

• Assessment with Web 2.0 by Professor Geoffrey Crisp
  Professor Geoffrey Crisp (University of Adelaide, Australia) presented a webinar on the changes in the student learning environment afforded by Web 2.0 and led a lively discussion with around 50 participants on why assessment practices need to change in response to these new learning environments. This event was hosted by University of Adelaide, Australia [duration: 1 hour and 17 minutes]. To view and download the session in a number of formats please click on the link above.

Specific Assessment Contexts

• Standards-based Assessment and Research Development for Postgraduate Coursework Dissertations
  If the assessment of dissertations and research projects is to be accurate, reliable, ethical, and imbued with educational integrity and equity, then one way that this can be achieved is the application of consistent and transparent criteria and clearly articulated standards.

• Competency-based Assessment [Word - 29k] or PDF - 195k
  Competency-based assessments are gathering interests in higher education especially in clinical disciplines such as medicine (Albanese et. al. 2010), nursing (Crookes & Brown, 2010), speech pathology (Ferguson, Lincoln, McAllister & McAllister, 2008) and occupational therapy (Rodger & Clark, 2009).

• Assessing first year students [Word - 176k] or PDF - 229k
  The literature around engagement suggests that the first year experience is important for student success. This toolkit has suggestions and examples.

• Assessing final year students - capstone units [Word - 172k] or PDF - 246k
  The final year can provide an opportunity for students to incorporate what they have learned as part of their transition from their degree. This document explains some strategies for capstone or final year unit assessment. You might also find some of the case studies useful.

• Assessing group work [Word - 168k] or PDF - 209k
  Working in teams is one of the capabilities we envisage for our graduates, yet group work can be difficult to manage. This document contains suggestions on how to successfully implement group work in your unit. You might also be interested in our podcast interview with Penelope Watson, Senior Lecturer in Law, talking about engaging students through criterion-referenced assessment and formative feedback in small group work.

• The 39 Steps: A checklist for assessing team and group work [Word - 143k] or PDF - 217k
  Penelope Watson from Macquarie Law School developed this guide to assessing team and group work in conjunction with LTC staff.

• Constructive guidance for learning: Standards-based assessment and exemplars [Powerpoint - 930k]
  Dr Graham Hendry from University of Western Sydney talked about his research at a recent seminar.

• Assessment and Learning in Practice Settings (ALPS) is a collaboration of 5 UK Universities, working on assessment frameworks and strategies for assessment in practice settings.

• Using Online Quizzes for Student Feedback [Word - 160k] or PDF - 156k

• Strategic Questioning approach to Scaffolding reflection [Word - 140k] or PDF - 120k

This resource was developed by the Learning and Teaching Centre at Macquarie University. 
Comments and feedback are welcome and can be sent to ltcenquiries@mq.edu.au