RAFT – Researching Assessment and Feedback Together

The Initative Team

Initiative Lead
Munster Technological University

Primary Contact
Sinead Huskisson
sinead.huskisson@cit.ie

Initiative Budget

€153,000

Initiative Type

Overview

This initiative has the aim of enhancing feedback and assessment experience for both staff and students at MTU.

This initiative aims to build and expand on BALI (Building Assessment Literacy Initiative) a MTU SATLE 2019 initiative. We propose to pilot a 2 semester-long action-research programme to challenge the dominant teacher-transmission approach to assessment and feedback.

By situating feedback/assessment in MTU’s wider Teaching, Learning, Assessment and Student Engagement (TLASE) context, the Semester 1 programme will encourage emerging T&L leaders to (i) identify a challenging feedback/assessment issue, (ii) explore potential solutions, (iii) develop an action plan to implement a chosen solution.

Self-selecting teams formed around common thematic areas will allow for a collaborative approach to exploring theory and sharing ideas and practice, whilst providing accountability partners, support networks, and potential research collaborators.

Weekly workshops will assist with transforming practice by exploring recent feedback and assessment literature, unpacking the action research process and designing the intervention. Throughout this process, staff/student partnerships will ensure both parties gain an empathetic view of the challenges associated with transforming practice and change leadership will be nurtured.

In the second semester, plans will be enacted to trial interventions. Staff will evaluate with input from students and disseminate findings at an MTU-organised national symposium on Feedback and Assessment June 2022. Publishing findings will be encouraged.
A cross-discipline, multi-campus approach enables peer support and provides opportunities to learn from diverse experiences.