UCD Lecturer Wins Best Paper Award 15.04.11

Dr Geraldine O’Neill, UCD Teaching and Learning, recently received a ‘Best Paper Award’ for her presentation at the ‘International Academic Conference’ (New Orleans, USA, 14th-16th March, 2011).

The paper was titled ‘Playing to your Strengths: Empowering Students Through Choice of Assessment Approaches’ and was based on a UCD HEA funded project on ‘Choice of Assessment Methods within a Module’. This approach has often been described as either an inclusive learning or universal design approach (Waterfield et al, 2006; Rose & Meyer, 2002). A key element in this consideration is how we strategically use assessment as a means to embrace student diversity and, as a result, to empower students in their learning.

The paper explored how this approach was implemented in seven modules in UCD. In each of these modules, all students were presented with a choice of two assessment methods, which had been designed to consider diversity of learning approaches. Quantitative and qualitative research was, and is continuing to be, carried out on the seven modules (n= 250 students) (O’Neill et al, 2010; O’Neill & Galvin, 2011). A questionnaire was designed for the purpose of this research. Both student and academic staff had a very positive experience of the choice of assessment methods within their module. Mature students were more positive than younger students (p<0.001) and academic staff advocated its use in other modules, provided the preparatory work to set it up was done in advance.

For staff interested in implementing this approach, see further resources/advice on UCD’s Teaching and Learning website.