Education Officer Blog

Thank you to everyone who filled out the survey for feedback on the proposed 2021/22 assessment parameters. Below I will outline some of our key findings (courtesy of the SU Voice Team!). We have fed these back to the university and we are using them to inform our conversations about assessments for 2021/22 and beyond. It is very useful, thank you!

The Proposal for Feedback

The current proposal by the university on parameters for 2021/22 assessments is:

‘The University's default position is that exams will be remote, open-book and will take place within a 24-hour window.

Greater flexibility is introduced to allow departments to choose to run more time-restricted exams where appropriate, such as a two-hour timed exam that each student can start when they choose. These would still take place within a 24-hour window.

Departments can request an exemption to enable them to run an exam at a fixed time (such as 9.30-11.30am).’

Survey Demographics

There was a mixture of respondents by year: first years accounted for 18 (31%), second years 13 (22.4%), third years 18 (31%) and fourth years 9 (15.5%) The majority of those taking part in the survey were undergraduate 60 (92.3%).

Feedback was received from all departments apart from Natural Sciences.  The highest response rate was seen in physics with 18 (27%) of responses from this department.

Most of the responses were received from UK students 47 (72.3%) and overseas totalled 18 (27.7%) of responders.

14 (21.5%) students taking part in the survey declared having a having a disability and 51 (78.5%) did not.

Survey Key findings

There were 66 responses received overall, of which 34 (51.1%) were happy with the approach proposed, 17 (17 25.8%) were not happy and 15 (22.7%) felt they were not completely happy/ not sure.

Negative comments

• Assessment design- Many negative comments highlighted worries that the assessment design may disadvantage students. Recommended timings in some cases were felt to be ‘unrealistic’ this academic year- ‘most of my course mates and I took on average 8-12 hours to complete what was said to be a 2-hour exam’. The length of time spent on online assessments was frequently sighted as impacting on sense of wellbeing and burnout during assessments.
• Difficulty of assessments- There was a perception of increased difficulty of assessments since moving online, which was felt not to be addressed by the proposed parameters.
• 2-hour fixed window- Some students were concerned that providing departments with the option to create time windows within a 24-hour period would result in a feeling of inequity of experience. Student studying overseas had some concerns around making sure the fixed window of time would disadvantage them because of time zones. There was also concern that poor internet strength puts students at a disadvantage, especially if time is limited to 2 hours per assessment.  
• Workspaces- students raised worries about the effect keep assessments online would have for those without adequate, or quite working environments and felt more should be done to address this.

Positive comments

• ‘Real world preparation’- Assessments in 24 hr period are felt by some to help students prepare for real world situations, ie managing time. ‘I am happy with the idea of online exams as I think this encourages more 'real world' and intuitive thinking. Rather than recalling facts. My only concern is 2 hours in not enough time and is not representative of a 'real-life work flow’.’
• Planning for covid impact- some respondents felt that keeping assessments online was the best approach as it minimises the risk of last-minute changes due to covid restrictions.
• Keeping consistent approach- Students that have not done any assessments in person have reported feeling nervousness about taking exams in person for the first time in final year without prior experience. Therefore, for finalists keeping assessments online in many cases was preferable.
• DAPs- For some students with DAPs being able to complete assessments in their own home rather than in an exam hall alleviated pressure and stress. Students also commented the 24-hour time window meant they were able to take breaks and work at their own pace.

Other feedback and suggestions.

• DAPs- Concerns were raised that the proposals for new assessment parameters does not detail how additional time for students with DAPs would be applied.
• Assessment design- one respondent wanted to highlight good practice in terms of assessment design. ‘I would prefer the options they gave us (psychology) in 2019/20. Essays, written as if for an exam, to be submitted at a certain date. We could choose 2 questions out of 6, which were shared at least 2 weeks before deadline. I would prefer this approach compared to the 24hr window one as I feel several 24hr exams in row could lead to my burnout. Knowing the exam questions beforehand made me help manage my time efficiently while keep healthy sleeping schedule and good mental health.’

Yet again, thank you for all the feedback, this will be key in shaping assesments this year.