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The technology of automated short answer grading (ASAG) can efficiently process answers according to human-prepared grading examples. Computer-assisted acquisition of grading examples uses a computer algorithm to sample real student responses for potentially good examples. The process is critical for optimizing the grading accuracy of machine learning models given a budget of human effort and the appeal of ASAG to online learning providers. This paper presents a novel method called short answer grading with active learning (SAGAL) that features a unified formulation comprising the heuristics for identifying potentially optimal examples of representative answers, borderline answers, and anomalous answers. The method is based on active learning, which iteratively samples good examples and queries for annotation to increase the sampling accuracy. SAGAL has been evaluated with three different public datasets of distinctive characteristics. The results show that the resulting models generally outperform the baseline semi-supervised learning methods on the same number of grading examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore how a group of English as a second language students (ESL) of a Management Faculty at a state university in Sri Lanka perceived the usefulness and ease of use of Facebook (FB) as a tool for Continuous Assessment (CA). It was imperative to assess students' perceptions regarding the implementation of FB for CA, as it represents a novel concept within the institute where this study took place. The study involved 257 participants, 191 females and 66 males. Data were collected through two open-ended questions, and the measurement scales developed and validated by Davis (1989) were used to analyze the usefulness and ease of use of FB. Findings indicate that most of the participants perceive FB as a useful tool for CA. As for its ease of use, only a few participants commented. The study's conclusion suggests that while FB has potential as a tool for CA, improvements are necessary regarding its ease of use. This study contributes to the current debate on the use of social media platforms as tools for CA, in higher educational contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on formative assessment in accounting education examines the learning outcomes stemming from e-assessment or formative assessment within a stand-alone subject, but few studies examine the benefits and implications of continuous formative assessment or the perceptions of students who undertake formative assessment. The findings of continuous formative assessment introduced in a subject on intermediate financial accounting suggest that students benefit incrementally from multiple attempts at the formative assessment with optimal performance achieved at 7 attempts from a total of 10 opportunities. However, students also highlighted that the additional workload to participate in continuous formative assessment presented a major participatory constraint. The results of this study are consistent with the proposition that formative assessment improves students' academic performance, but student perceptions on the benefits of formative assessment differ, particularly students with prior accounting knowledge and international students who appeared more receptive to formative assessment and feedback compared with domestic students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports a series of studies that assessed the performance of students on continuous assessment components from two courses in an undergraduate psychology programme. Data were collected from two consecutive cohorts of students (total N = 576) and the grades of students were compared based on additional learning needs (ALN; ALN versus No ALN), whether or not the students had requested an extension to a deadline, and whether or not students had missed any of the tests that made up the continuous assessment component. Results showed no significant differences in attainment between students with and without ALN, supporting the argument that continuous assessment does not differentially impact students who already require additional support. Students who were granted deadline extensions achieved significantly lower scores, but only on the course with content that built week on week. Students who missed one or more tests achieved significantly lower scores even if the grade was calculated ignoring the questions that a student had not attempted. The implications of these findings for assessment practice in higher education are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article expresses excitement about contributing to discussions on ungrading at universities, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on current discussions. It explores the history and impetus behind ungrading, especially its response to disparities in the education system, racial equity concerns, and its role in addressing students' mental health. It highlights ongoing research and initiatives in writing studies.

We examine the relationship between secondary school attainment and early-career graduate salaries in the UK. Based on literature on grade inflation, we hypothesise that there is uncertainty regarding the quality of the signal communicated by degree classifications, and that secondary school grades can be used as a tool to determine the veracity of classifications. We find that differences in secondary school attainment, expressed in UCAS points, are consistently a significant predictor of salary differences among graduates attaining Upper-Second-class degrees, and some First-class graduates. We estimate predicted probabilities, to predict the likelihood of a graduate appearing in a given salary band based on the combination of their secondary school attainment, degree classification and the university attended. The most common category of graduate in our sample (250 to 325 UCAS points, studied at a Post-1992 institution and attained an Upper Second class) has a 55% chance of attaining a salary less than £20,000 in the 12 months after graduation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study sought to ascertain how Senior High School mathematics teachers perceived Continuous Assessment (CA) and used CA scores. It also explored relationships between teachers' perceptions of CA and their use of CA scores as well as the difficulties mathematics teachers faced administering CA. One hundred sixty (160) Senior High School mathematics teachers from two districts in the Central Region of Ghana participated in the study. Questionnaires were administered to the research participants in 16 Senior High Schools (SHSs) across the two districts. The data collected was analyzed, using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The results from the study revealed that the participants perceived CA primarily as a means of generating grades and providing feedback. The majority of the participants used their students' CA scores for the purpose of generating end-of-term grades. Teachers' teaching experience and professional status were found to have effect on their perception of CA and the use of CA scores. A strong positive correlation was found to exist between teachers' perception and their use of CA as well as their teaching experience and the use of CA scores. The implications of the findings for policy and continuous professional development of mathematics teachers have been provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This theoretical paper presents a critical analysis of the integration of Computer-Assisted Learning Activities (CALA) into the newly implemented competence-based curriculum in Zimbabwean secondary schools, particularly in the context of limited ICT resources. The study aims to contribute to the ongoing discourse addressing skepticism and resistance from parents, teachers, and learners, which hampers the effective implementation of CALA. Employing the Network Society Theory (NST) as a conceptual framework, we examine the potential benefits of CALA in aligning with NST principles and its capacity to mitigate digital disparities. The world is transitioning to geographically detached connections, individualized mobile lifestyles and teenagers should not be alienated from this global village. The article argued that in the NST, it is the role of the state to provide conditions for participation, which the Zimbabwean government has done through CALA, therefore, it is tantamount to malevolence if teachers and schools decide to deprive learners of this opportunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous assessment of slope stability is important to the open pit design and operation. This article aims to present a tool for evaluating the stability conditions of rock slopes in mining, based on a global geotechnical database, using machine learning techniques. Different models are evaluated in this research: the general model, which uses all variables; the mathematical model, which uses only variables selected by the random forest (out-of-bag); and two expert-based models: the Q-Slope model and the Santos model. The validation of the model was done through the test sample, using partition confusion matrices aiming at reproducibility of the results. A study of the types of errors was carried out using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The study of errors allowed the identification of samples that were inconsistent with the others. Afterwards, the models were redone and compared with the previous ones. The best performers are presented and discussed. The proposed methodology does not replace the classic analysis of slope stability. On the contrary, it contributes to engineers and geologists with a tool for monitoring the stability conditions of slopes in a mining operation. Slope stability analysis must be carried out throughout the mine's lifetime and, therefore, it is believed that the tool proposed here can optimize the selection of slopes most susceptible to instability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative-phenomenological inquiry explored the lived experiences of teachers in the assessment strategies for LSEN in a regular classroom in Tagum District. The purpose of this study was to explore and understand the lived experiences of teachers on the assessment strategies for LSEN in a regular classroom and how they face the challenges encountered. Thirteen (13) teachers participated in the in-depth interview and focus group discussion. They were selected using the snowball sampling method. The results revealed the participants' lived experiences, which include the use of differentiated assessments, employing individualized instruction and sense of fulfillment and satisfaction. There are also chief issues emerged in the study namely: difficulty in handling undesirable behaviors, communication problems and lack of training. To address the challenges encountered, they mentioned five ways: collaboration and support, positive attitude and motivation; acceptance, continuous education and modification of assessment. They also cited insights they can share to others: additional proper training for teachers, more assessment tools and materials, background profiling and lessen the number of students in the general education classroom. The result of the study implies that varied assessment strategies should be employed to address the unique needs of LSEN. Assessing and handling both regular, and LSEN is quite challenging for the participants. Hence, the findings suggest using varied assessment to meet the unique needs of the students, send teachers to trainings specifically in assessing LSEN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the transformed continuous assessment CA scores of Osun State junior secondary schools with a view to providing information on the procedure for transforming CA scores for better comparability of scores among rural and urban secondary schools. The study adopted the ex-post-facto research design. The population for the study comprised all junior secondary school class III students who had CA scores during 2010/2011 session in both rural and urban secondary schools in Osun State. The sample consisted of 1200 students selected using multistage sampling technique. A proforma titled Continuous Assessment Scores Retrieval was used to collect CA scores of the selected students in English Language and Mathematics. Data collected were analyzed using percentages and Pearson's Product moment correlation statistics. The results showed that the transformed CA scores of rural and urban secondary schools were above the mean score in Mathematics (62.70%) and English Language (66.0%). The result also showed that there was a significant positive relationship between the transformed CA scores and raw CA scores obtained by students in Mathematics and English Language (r=1.00; p<0.05). The results further showed that there was a significant difference in the transformed CA scores of rural and urban secondary schools in Mathematics (t=5.341; p<0.05) and English Language (t=4.395; p<0.05). Finally, it was observed that Osun State Ministry of Education did not use standardized procedures (transformation models) to transform the raw scores submitted by the schools. The study therefore concluded that transformed CA scores of rural and urban secondary schools in Osun State would be comparable if appropriate transformation models were used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's insights on aspects of examining programmes relatd to swimming and lifesaving. Topics discussed include the two types of assessment in swimming such as continuous assessment, also known as formative assessment and summative assessment, the limited understanding of teachers about the principles of movement in the water, and various factors involved in the assessment process like consistency or stability.

Copyright of Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences (2522-3380) is the property of Arab Journal of Sciences & Research Publishing (AJSRP) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Assessment in higher education with a transformational instead of a reproductive purpose can be a powerful way of supporting student learning. Since university teachers usually design their own assessments, it is important to investigate their conceptions of assessment. The current study focuses on teachers' conceptions of their current and ideal assessment with a focus on intermediate assessment. Thirteen teachers teaching law, psychology and criminology, reflected on their current and ideal assessment in an attempt to eliminate the influence of practical constraints on assessment practice. Results indicate that the majority of teachers have transformational conceptions of their intermediate assessment practice, and in general, their conceptions of the ideal assessment are even more transformational. This suggests that teachers' main focus for assessment is on student learning and that a lack of transformational assessments in practice may be mainly caused by external constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on an exploratory study in which questionnaires assessing the understanding of grade 4 mathematics concepts learnt as prescribed by Continuous Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) were administered to 219 grade 5 learners from 20 randomly selected primary schools in the Limpopo province of South Africa at the beginning of the year 2014. This paper reports only on the understanding displayed in responses to five out of twelve questions that sought interpretation of geometric concepts in the questionnaires. This was a both quantitative and qualitative study in which structured and semi-structured interviews were conducted with six learners on the basis of their responses to gain more insight into how they constructed their geometric meanings. Results indicated that some learners did not understand the questions but would respond to questions based on a word or diagram that they associated with a particular concept. Nonetheless, 99% learners displayed understanding and familiarity with the concept of similarity. It can be recommended in this study that the interpretation in some questions be explained using African languages that were used in the learners’ previous grades. Also the use models like photos, diagrams, graphs, symbols, icons, and other visual representations can help promote the conceptual understanding of geometric concepts to learners in the intermediate phase. The study therefore concludes that for learners to interpret geometric concepts in the intermediate phase, their geometric vocabulary should be developed such that they are able to make connections between new ideas and their prior learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a continuous assessment methodology for a computer programming course supported by an automatic assessment tool, applied to the practical programming exercises performed by the students. The interaction between the students and the assessment tool was studied through quantitative analyses. In particular, the solutions proposed by the students (computer programs) were analyzed using the verdicts given by the automatic assessment tool: correct solutions or incorrect solutions. In the case of incorrect solutions, the types of programming errors were studied. Additionally, interaction was also studied by analyzing the students' success rate. This rate is the percentage of correct solutions among the total number of attempts (correct and incorrect). Moreover, the relationship between success rate and academic performance was analyzed. Furthermore, this research examines the students' perceptions toward the assessment tool through interviews. The results of this study help understanding the benefits and perceptions of the students with respect to the use of an automatic assessment tool in a computer programming course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student engagement is intrinsically linked to two important metrics in learning: student satisfaction and the quality of the student experience. One of the ways that engagement can be influenced is through careful curriculum design. Using the knowledge that many students are ‘assessment-driven’, a low-stakes continuous weekly summative e-assessment was introduced to a module. The impact this had on student engagement was measured by studying student activity within the module virtual learning environment. It was found that introduction of the e-assessments led to a significant increase in virtual learning environment activity compared to the virtual learning environment activity in that module the previous year, and also compared to the virtual learning environment activity of two other modules studied by the same student cohort. As many institutions move towards greater blended or online deliveries, it will become more important to ensure that virtual learning environments encourage high levels of student engagement in order to maintain or enhance the student experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Journal of Instruction is the property of International Journal of Instruction and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The current study aimed to evaluate the chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of almond tree ( Prunus dulcis D. A. Webb syn. Prunus amygdalus; var. Shokoufeh) leaves versus hulls, and green versus dry leaves as feed for ruminants. The fresh green almond hulls (GAH) and leaves (GAL) were harvested and spread under a shade to dry. Dry almond leaves (DAL) were collected from under the trees where as dry almond hulls (DAH) were collected 4 weeks after harvesting the fresh samples. The chemical composition of substrates was determined using standard approaches and the metabolisable energy (ME), in vitro dry matter (DMD) and in vitro organic matter (OMD) digestibility were measured using the in vitro gas production (GP) technique. The GAL contained 81 g crude protein (CP) kg DM while DAH contained 103 g CP kg DM. The CP was higher ( P = 0.0003) in dry (leaves and hulls) than in green (leaves and hulls) samples. The ash content ranged from 99.2 to 181.5 g kg DM in DAH and DAL, respectively, ( P = 0.0041). The ether extract content ranged from 27 for DAH to 65 g kg for DAL ( P = 0.0018). The acid detergent fibre and neutral detergent fibre content ranged from 185 to 304 and 444 to 620 g kg DM ( P = 0.04), for GAL and DAH, respectively. The DAH had the highest ( P = 0.0001) GP and GP. The DAH had the highest ( P = 0.0001) potential GP (i.e., b), while the GP rate was highest for GAL and GAH ( P = 0.034), ME was highest for DAH ( P = 0.0001), and in vitro OMD was highest for DAH ( P = 0.0001). The highest DMD ( P = 0.0001) values were obtained with DAH followed by GAL, DAL and GAH, respectively. It can be concluded that almond hulls and leaves have a good nutritional potential to cover the maintenance nutrient requirements of small ruminants. Almond hulls and leaves can also be used as supplement to low quality mature pasture and/or crop residues. However, more studies are warranted to better characterize these feeds in in vivo animal feeding trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers usually expect that any form of a continuous assessment (CA) should contribute significantly to the student learning process in introductory programming courses. To foster teachers to go beyond the current practices of a CA applied when to programming, from 2011 to 2014, we investigated the use of the Boca Online Contest Administrator (BOCA) system, an online judge used in programming marathons, and the CA of program correctness in the cohorts of an introductory programming course. Empirical results show that there is no significant difference between student's performance when comparing the cohorts that used a CA and did not use a CA, and when comparing the cohorts that used and did not used the BOCA system but used a CA. An in-depth analysis revealed the potential and limitations of the use of a CA and the BOCA system, unveiling the need for the adoption of assessment practices and environments that build cumulative knowledge through multiple means of assessment, allowing profitable interactions among students, and between students and their teacher regarding the students' solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effectiveness of continuous assessment can be judged by making observation and collecting information periodically from specific tasks given to students during their learning process. Present research aimed to explore outcomes of continuous assessment that enhanced the academic achievement of elementary school students. A sample of sixty students was taken from eighth grade students studying at a public sector girls secondary school of Lahore for the experiment. These students were studying Social Studies as a compulsory subject. Post-test design of control and experimental groups was used. An achievement test was used to collect the information from respondents. Independent sample t-test was used as test of significance. It was concluded that continuous assessment had positive effects on students' achievement. It was recommended that teachers who are well versed in evaluation and assessment techniques should be encouraged and their expertise should be utilized for the purpose of enhancing students' performance at elementary level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On any type of course (on site or online), a learner is evaluated whether he has acquired the knowledge and competences provided in the course. The evaluation should be performed by evaluating his progression by means of the interaction in the classroom or assessment activities. Mostly, assessment activities are used to check the level of expertise of the learner. Typically, the assessment model and assessment activities of subjects in official programmes are the same for all the learners, since they should be evaluated having the same opportunities and conditions. However, when the learner is evaluated based on a continuous assessment model, he is demonstrating on each activity his knowledge and proficiency level and, at the same time, his reputation could be also built based on the actions he is performing within the course. Therefore, the assessment model can be particularly adapted for each learned based on this information. In this paper, we present a general system to adapt any component of the assessment process (model, activity, question...) based on different evidences gathered from the learning process of the learner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment policy in some countries continues to promote the use of continuous assessment (CA) within classrooms. Several policy claims have been made about the potential of CA to improve education. Using data from a 2010 evaluation of the Trinidad and Tobago Continuous Assessment Programme (CAP), canonical correlation analysis (CCA) was used to unravel the pattern of relationships between institutional variables, professional learning, teacher beliefs, and CA components. The CA components measured were (1) overall use, (2) multiple assessment formats use and (3) formative feedback use. Each CA component was shown to be associated with different variables, with overall use related to several teacher belief factors such as extra-role behaviour. However, multiple assessment formats use added only a small amount of unique variance to the CCA solution. Moreover, the canonical variate for formative feedback use was not statistically significant. These findings have implications for CA as a policy tool. Successful implementation of CA may require high quality professional learning as well as teacher workforce remodelling. Even when implemented successfully, however, CA may not be a useful vehicle for promoting high quality formative assessment or use of multiple assessment formats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unreliability in marking is well documented, yet we lack studies that have investigated assessors’ detailed use of assessment criteria. This project used a form of Kelly’s repertory grid method to examine the characteristics that 24 experienced UK assessors notice in distinguishing between students’ performance in four contrasting subject disciplines: that is their implicit assessment criteria. Variation in the choice, ranking and scoring of criteria was evident. Inspection of the individual construct scores in a sub-sample of academic historians revealed five factors in the use of criteria that contribute to marking inconsistency. The results imply that, whilst more effective and social marking processes that encourage sharing of standards in institutions and disciplinary communities may help align standards, assessment decisions at this level are so complex, intuitive and tacit that variability is inevitable. We conclude that universities should be more honest with themselves and with students, and actively help students to understand that application of assessment criteria is a complex judgement and there is rarely an incontestable interpretation of their meaning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study is to assess the prospects and impact of continuous assessment (CA) in higher education. Continuous assessment is an ongoing assessment that is built into the instructional process. It is helpful to take corrective measures on students' learning in groups as well as individually. Given that formative evaluation takes place during the instructional program, then it can be said that continuous assessment constitutes formative evaluation. This paper focuses on the Impact of Continuous Assessment on Performance of Higher education in Ethiopia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report examines the effectiveness of the virtual literacy model in pedagogical competence acquisition and presents an analysis of the model’s efficacy, advantages and limitations. The model was applied throughout the 2012–13 school year to a sample made up of 2,151 students enrolled in the subject Knowledge Society Technology and Education and the 44 tutors who worked with them. Data were gathered from an online student survey and grade lists (exams and continuous assessment activities). Content analysis was used to analyse the open-ended survey questions, and descriptive analysis was applied to the quantitative data. Findings suggest that, while there is room for improvement in the assessment system, the virtual literacy model does contribute to competence acquisition. Further research is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Principles of Peer Leadership is an undergraduate course developed through the collaboration of leadership educators with colleagues from residence life and fraternity/sorority life to provide instruction to undergraduate students serving in peer leadership positions across campus. The course comprises online and recitation components to connect leadership concepts to the students' peer leadership practice. This application brief is intended to a) provide an overview of the course along with relevant scholarship used in its design, b) detail the course format and its various components for developing leadership skills, and c) offer educator reflections about how the course has worked well, and areas for improvement. Among the recommendations for future practice is a clear message of collaboration with university stakeholders and continuous assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current opinion on undergraduate studies has led to a reformulation of teaching methodologies to base them not just on learning, but also on skills and competencies. In this approach, the teaching/learning process should accomplish both knowledge assimilation and skill development. Previous works demonstrated that a strategy that uses continuous evaluation is able to meet both objectives. However, those studies did not evaluate and quantify the additional effort required to implement such strategies. This paper evaluates the additional instructor effort required when implementing continuous evaluation in a first-year Computer Fundamentals course in the Computer Engineering degree program at the Technical University of Valencia, Spain. The experiment quantifies how instructor workload increases under different continuous evaluation strategies and how this affects the overall student grade. Both the “standard” continuous evaluation method and the intensive continuous evaluation method are analyzed, the latter being a proposal that builds upon the standard method by increasing the number of tests and examinations. The results obtained reveal that continuous evaluation improves student grades but that intensive continuous evaluation is liable to generate an excessive instructor overload without having a significant impact on student scores. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The fairness and precision of peer assessment have been questioned by educators and academics. Of particular interest, yet poorly understood, are the factors underlying the biases that cause unfair and imprecise peer assessments. To shed light on this issue, I investigated gender and academic major biases in peer assessments of oral presentations. The study sample comprised 66 science students enrolled in a formative assessment-based communication module at an Asian university. Each student presented an oral presentation in English and also evaluated 10–14 of their classmates’ oral presentations. The students’ evaluations were anchored by the instructor’s evaluation of each oral presentation. I performed many-facet Rasch measurement (MFRM) for two purposes: (a) to examine the effect of multiple facets on the student and teacher ratings of oral presentations and (b) to adjust the ratings on oral presentations according to gender and academic major biases. The scores assigned by student raters had good fit to MFRM; however, when students evaluated oral presentations by peers of the opposite sex, the scores were overestimated. An academic major bias was also observed, where students consistently underestimated the scores of same-major peers. After adjusting for biases, it was concluded that peer assessments can be a reliable and useful form of formative assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The present paper addresses the subject of continuous evaluation and of the IT tools that support it. The approach starts from the main concepts and methods used in the teaching process, according to the assessment methodology and, then, it focuses on their implementation in the Wondershare QuizCreator software. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to analyze students’ academic results following the introduction of a continuous assessment system in Higher Education. This study examines a large sample that consists of third-year students’ grades across nine subjects in the Bachelor of Business Administration program at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain). Specifically, this paper studies the relations among three types of grades (i.e. final exam grades (FEGs), continuous assessment activities grades (excluding the final exam) and GAGs, which are calculated as the weighted averages of the FEGs and the continuous assessment activities grades) and the influence of the number of students who actively participate in a subject and the date of the final exam on students’ grades. Generally, this study reveals a positive effect of continuous assessment activities on students’ academic success. Furthermore, there is a statistically significant positive relation between the number of students who actively follow a subject and their GAGs. Finally, the earlier the students completed the final exam, the higher their grades were on this exam. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, the effect of continuous assessment on the learning outcomes of two chemical engineering courses is studied over a several-year period. Average grades and passing percentages of courses after the final examination are reported and also student feedback on the courses is collected. The results indicate significantly better learning results after the adoption of continuous assessment in the courses. Also student feedback suggests higher quality in teaching after the adoption of more activating teaching methods which compel students to study effectively throughout the course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although higher education is aimed at self-motivated, young adults and not underage youngsters, the prevalence of an external driving force seems inevitable. Present paper, - and the research presented within - is aimed at discovering the correlation between students' performance evaluation forms and students' results. The data presented within the current article has been gathered in the past 5 semesters among students of Keleti Faculty of Business and Management at Óbuda University. The main focus was the internal and external motivators/driving forces behind the students' learning activities, or the lack of them. The investigation also focused on the development of self-consciousness within the group with continuous performance evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monitoring progress in psychotherapy routinely (i.e., client feedback) has yielded positive results for improving both outcome and retention in individual and couple therapy; however, evidence of client feedback efficacy in a group format is limited. Using a randomized cluster design, group therapy participants (N = 84) were assigned to a client feedback or treatment-as-usual (TAU) condition in a university counseling center. Clients in the feedback condition used the Partners for Change Outcomes Management System (PCOMS; Duncan, 2011). Feedback participants had significantly larger pre-post group therapy gains (d = 0.41) and higher rates of reliable and clinically significant change when compared to TAU participants on the Outcome Rating Scale (Miller & Duncan, 2000). Clients in the feedback condition also attended more group sessions compared to TAU participants. Study implications and future recommendations are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introductory chemistry has long been considered a service course by various departments that entrust chemistry departments with teaching their students. As a result, most introductory courses include a majority of students who are not chemistry majors, and many are health and science related majors who are required to take chemistry. To identify content areas that are either well covered or sparsely covered, approximately 2000 exam items from four types of General Chemistry ACS exams (Full Year General Chemistry, General Chemistry Conceptual, First Term General Chemistry, and Second Term General Chemistry) spanning two decades were aligned to the Anchoring Concepts Content Map (ACCM). ACS exams were chosen as artifacts due to the nature of the exam development by committees consisting of chemists who are experts in the field. The ACCM is developed such that the statements from the first two levels are stable across the entire undergraduate chemistry curriculum, while the third and fourth levels are subdiscipline specific. It was found that there are 17 statements at the second level (Enduring Understanding) that have rarely been assessed on General Chemistry ACS exams over the past 20 years. Some of these topics appear in areas that are likely important for students whose interest lies in the life sciences, including no items testing the concept of intermolecular forces in the context of large molecules. These results suggest that chemistry curriculum reform efforts may benefit from considering specifics of content domain coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a popular perception that large classes result in low levels of student motivation, satisfaction, and engagement. In International Studies ( IS) programs, this suggests a challenge for getting students to understand and connect with complex theoretical concepts used to deconstruct the international system and can affect the overall quality of the academic experience. The present study offers insight into how to cope with large IS classes, promoting student engagement through adjusting teaching and assessment methods. Based on the results of two surveys, the Introduction to International Relations course at the University of the Witwatersrand appears to have been successful in promoting student engagement. Focusing on interactive teaching and assessment strategies that promote critical thinking and instill deep learning offers colleagues presented with large classes a chance to establish a vibrant learning environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Personalized feedback tools in learning is a powerful method that expert applies when helping students to optimize their learning. We propose a new educational framework to optimize the continuous evaluation process for large groups. In our system, a computer provides tests to the mobile devices of the students; they then return the answers to be corrected. The framework provides real-time knowledge about the progress of the class to the teacher and real-time feedback to the students, increasing the rate of student success. Our low-cost implementation makes it unnecessary to incorporate additional resources or to modify the infrastructure. We have tested it in several courses and conferences. We conclude with an evaluation and a discussion from different stakeholders perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The WWW nowadays enables faculty to develop new Internet-based applications that can be used to enhance classroom instruction. There is a clear evolution towards the implementation of new service-oriented learning/teaching systems, which can be considered as the latest generation of Internet-based platforms. This work first describes a service-oriented system in order to follow the students' progress and automatically assess their practical activities, not theoretical knowledge. The service oriented paradigm allows us to implement a more advanced system for the self-evaluation and continuous assessment of the students' progress in the field of Information Technology, where activities measure practical daily-work skills. Second, the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) is used to analyze the acceptance of our proposal. In the results obtained, the participants found the system significantly easier to use, and it proved useful for their purposes. It is also concluded that participants (students and faculty) feel confident with the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous Assessment (CA) systems are externally directed, curriculum-based assessment schemes used for both summative and formative purposes within classrooms. CA has been implemented as national policy in several postcolonial developing countries and is believed to hold great promise for improving education outcomes. This theory-driven evaluation (TDE) used a mixed methods research design to interrogate the nature of CA practice. The focus was on stakeholders’ understanding and practice of formative assessment in the CA Programme (CAP) of Trinidad and Tobago. The integrated findings suggest that the programme planners’ formative intent was often not fulfilled. Instead, teachers routinely recorded assessment marks without using the data. There is evidence that formative assessment practice was not congruent with teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and practices. Although the design of CA schemes suggests the possibility of synergy between formative and summative purposes, in reality this ideal is rarely achieved in these particular contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Student engagement is an important issue in higher education, and is related to the quality of the student experience. Increasing student engagement is one way of enhancing quality at a higher education institution. An institution is able to influence student engagement in a number of ways, one being through curriculum design. The use of a low-stakes continuous weekly summative e-assessment had a positive influence on student engagement in an optional level 5 (second year) undergraduate geography module. Students considered their increased engagement was a direct consequence of this assessment method. It was also found that students thought they improved their learning, particularly their understanding, as a result of the continuous assessment. This study suggests that carefully designed assessments can be used to increase student engagement and learning, and, as a result, contribute to improving the quality of the overall student experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the effect varying models have on student understanding of fractions. The study addressed the question of what students know and understand about fractional concepts through the use of discrete and continuous models. A sample of 54 students in kindergarten and 3rd grade were given an interview pretest, participated in teacher-led classroom instruction with a series of six research-based lessons, and then were given a posttest. The purpose was to examine the use of discrete and continuous models and the impact on student understanding of fractions. A mixed-methods approach was utilized, with descriptive statistics discussed relative to quantitative pre/post data. Qualitative data were collected in the form of observer notes, teacher reflections, and anecdotal assessment. A case study approach was taken to examine findings within and across grade levels. Major findings include (1) students demonstrated growth in understanding of fractions with both models; (2) students generally understood fraction concepts better using discrete models, but results were mixed; (3) students were not necessarily able to express fractional ideas at a rigorous level; and (4) 3rd-graders were able to use partitioning effectively but were able to recognize equivalence more easily within the discrete model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]