Modes of group-work and assessment which avoid students’ complaints

Abstract

The School of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Design has teamed with the Centre for Learning and Professional Development (CLPD) for 3 years to offer “Preparation for Effective Group Work” seminars. Deemed highly successful by participating students through Student Evaluation of Learning and Teaching (SELT) evaluations, CLPD and School staff, these Seminars combined theory, action and reflection on action to prepare students for the Semester-length focus on group work. Evaluation of group work being undertaken and assessed, through mid point and end of Semester SELTs (anonymous and voluntary student evaluations which are analysed and reported at arm’s length by the CLPD) reported that students have maintained this high initial level of satisfaction with group work throughout the Semester. There are two modes of “assessment” being discussed in this Paper • the efficacy of students’ self and peer assessment of their actual group work and • their own learning about group work (evaluations) The components for this successful group work assessment include: • Preparation • Self selected groups • Authentic tasks • Strong focus on graduate attributes • Self and peer group work allocation sheets Whilst this presentation will briefly highlight relevant literature, it will focus primarily upon what is effective and what is not effective in group work assessment, as well as showcasing students’ SELT declared perceptions of the benefits of group work to them. It will not discuss whether students in the courses which participated in this preparation for effective group work or other components of successful group work preparation outperformed other earlier cohorts of students studying cogent courses due to the development of courses within School Programs as a result of course and Program reviews. Therefore courses have not been offered more than once in this developed format – and these courses are not similar to their predecessors.