UTL40140

Learning Outcomes:

Having successfully completed this module, you should be able to:

1. Critically reflect, on the advantages and disadvantages, of the assessment and feedback approaches in your own and other modules, programmes and/or learning activities
2. Engage in peer discussion and peer review of your colleagues assessment and feedback strategies and ideas
3. Analyse and synthesise the relationship between the key assessment principles in the context of higher education, i.e. validity, reliability, diversity, academic integrity, transparency, etc.
4. Evaluate the application of assessment and feedback approaches in your current and future practices, having experienced a variety of assessments of‚ for and as learning
5. Explore inclusive assessment and feedback approaches to support diverse student cohorts
6. Explore the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on assessment approaches
7. Critically reflect on your own and other approaches to assessment and feedback based on the scholarly literature

Indicative Module Content:

The themes in the module commence with the common purposes of assessment and feedback (National Forum 2017) and is then organised around the principles of assessment in higher education, for example, Bloxham and Boyd (2008), UCD T&L (2019).

It explores, therefore, assessment equity and diversity, inclusive assessment, assessment load, feedback approaches, context of assessment, academic integrity, grading, programmatic approach to assessment.

In addition, the module will explore online assessment and feedback approaches.

Student Effort Hours:

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:

The module, this Trimester (Autumn 2025), is face to face.

The seminars explore the different practices in assessment and feedback and encourage dialogue around the students’ experiences, drawing on the required readings for the different assignments.

GenAI in this module:
Assignment 1: Peer Review of Initial Plan.
This activity (in Feedback Fruits) is based on your own initial ideas for a change to assessment or feedback in a module of your choice. You can use GenAI prior to submission to explore assessment/feedback ideas for your module, but you should not use GenAI in the composition of the text for the submission. I would like to hear these plans in your own words.

Assignment 2: Critical Reflection on the Evidence.
In this assignment, you will be given the choice whether to use or not use GenAI in your assignment. We will explore the rationale for this in the sessions in the module. Where you have used GenAI, you will be required to be transparent around its use, and where appropriate, include the outputs. However, in the 'Critical reflection on GenAI use' section, you are not allowed to use GenAI, these should be your own reflections, in your own words. For more details, see Assignment 2.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Learning Requirements:

This is an in-service module for teachers in higher education. A condition of enrolment is that students have a significant teaching commitment during the academic year in which they undertake this module. (The definition of “significant teaching commitment” will vary with context; but, as a general rule, a minimum of 50 hours would be expected.)

Module Requisites and Incompatibles

Incompatibles:
UTL40270 - Assessment & Feedback in H Ed


 

Assessment Strategy

 

Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Peer review activities
• Self-assessment activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Students engage in a peer review as part of their first assignment. There will also be group feedback after the first assignment. This will feedforward to the second (final assignment). There will be an opportunity to self-assess the final draft assignment prior to its submission. The final assignment will use individual rubric feedback, and will also give individual feedback if a specific area for feedback is requested.

Bearman, M., & Ajjawi, R. (2023). Learning to work with the black box: Pedagogy for a world with artificial intelligence. British Journal of Educational Technology, 54(5), 1160-1173.

Corbin, Thomas , Phillip Dawson & Danny Liu (15 May 2025): Talk is cheap: why structural assessment changes are needed for a time of GenAI, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2025.2503964

Dawson, P. , Henderson, M., Mahoney, P., Phillips, M., Ryan, T. Boud, D & Molloy. E. (2018): What makes for effective feedback: staff and student perspectives, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2018.1467877

Ion, G., Díaz-Vicario, A., & Mercader, C. (2023). Making steps towards improved fairness in group work assessment: The role of students’ self- and peer-assessment. Active Learning in Higher Education, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/14697874231154826

Harland, T., & Wald, N. (2020). The assessment arms race and the evolution of a university’s assessment practices. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 46(1), 105–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2020.174575

NAIN (National Academic Integrity Network (2023) Generative Artificial Intelligence: Guidelines for Educators, QQI: Dublin

National Forum (2017) Expanding our Understanding of Assessment and Feedback in Irish Higher Education, Author: Dublin. https://www.teachingandlearning.ie/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Sectoral-insight-web-ready.pdf

O’Neill G. and L. Padden (2022). “Diversifying assessment methods: Barriers, benefits and enablers”, Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 59:4, 398-409, DOI: 10.1080/14703297.2021.1880462

O’Neill, G., McEvoy, E., & Maguire, T. (2020). Developing a national understanding of assessment and feedback in Irish higher education. Irish Educational Studies, 39(4), 495–510. https://doi.org/10.1080/03323315.2020.1730220

Reinholz , D. (2015): The assessment cycle: a model for learning through peer assessment, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI:10.1080/02602938.2015.1008982

Tai, J., Ajjawi, R & A. Umarova (2021): How do students experience inclusive assessment? A critical review of contemporary literature, International Journal of Inclusive Education, DOI: 10.1080/13603116.2021.2011441

Tomas C. & Jessop, T (2018): Struggling and juggling: a comparison of student assessment loads across research and teaching-intensive universities, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2018.1463355

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.