Assessment for Learning

The project Assessment for Learning (ASFL) wants to analyse a organization's assessment culture. This should contribute to students learning by raising the awareness on the importance for assessment in the beginning of learning processes and on evaluation procedures and structures. A validated English survey translated into Norwegian helps to understand how a current assessment culture look like in an educational organization. By this strength and weaknesses in the assessment culture can be further explored.

The outcomes have been achieved. The desired collaboration has been improved and a network has been established. We have prepared a coupled research proposal for improving assessment for learning at the University of Agder and our partner University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) which is not delivered yet due to the delayed deadline for the FINNUT proposals in April 2019. The secondary objectives to intensify researchers mobility were accomplished by mutual workshops, webinars and conference visits. Our goal to develop assessment approaches for better analyzing learning opportunities at the course, program, and institutional levels has been accomplished. We have developed a survey instrument.

Our goal is to improve and develop assessment approaches for better learning opportunities at the course, program, and institutional levels. Assessment is a strategic success factor in education. We will focus on assessment, assessment culture, and how assessment impacts student learning. Improving assessment will change, influence, and enhance learning because good assessment starts with innovative approaches to learning (Suskie, 2009). a) Objectives for international networking The University of Agder and the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) each have individual experience within the field of assessment. The institutions wish to combine their expertise and develop innovative means to impact student learning. Working collaboratively, we will conduct research to develop, refine, apply, and analyze assessment of student learning in different learning environments. The networking and research project will address the needs of the two institutions in different countries and supporting educational systems. b) Objectives for the pre-project IPO (Innovation projects in the Public Sector) The main objective for the pre-project is to write a proposal for a research project on assessment for learning. We want to identify and couple research on similar research objectives to empower the individual researchers within and across their departments. Our vision is to create a culture for assessment at the universities that is to inform, develop and enhance the competence for better assessment. Because of the different assessment traditions, we want to learn from each other and build a foundation for comparative research. This project will achieve this objective through face-to-face workshops. In preparation for a project proposal, we will pilot a survey to determine the current culture of assessment at the two universities. We will also create a sustainable virtual communication and repository workspace, a system on assessment experiences and future publications.