A fundamental aspect of work integrated learning (WIL) is the development of professional competence, the ability of students to perform in the workplace. Alignment theory therefore suggests that the assessment of WIL should include an assessment of students' demonstration of professional competence in the workplace. The assessment of professional…

Ongoing and rapid change is having a significant impact on the social and cultural contexts of assessment in higher education. Change and innovation have been driven not only by advances in our knowledge of effective practice but also by government policies, the latter often resulting in uncertainty regarding the freedoms and responsibilities of…

This study looks at the fairness of assessing learning journals both as the fairness in creating a valid and robust marking process as well as how different student groups may have unfair disadvantages in performing well in reflective assessment tasks. The fairness of a marking process is discussed through reflecting on the practical process and…

This article provides the background and context to the important issue of assessment and equity in relation to Indigenous students in Australia. Questions about the validity and fairness of assessment are raised and ways forward are suggested by attending to assessment questions in relation to equity and culture-fair assessment. Patterns of…

This report critically examines studies of how scientific research drives innovation which is then translated into socio-economic benefits. It focuses on research evaluation insights that are relevant not only to the academic community, but also to policymakers and evaluation practitioners--and particularly to biomedical and health research…

The purpose of the Australian conference on mathematical assessment was to address the challenges to traditional methods of assessment that have resulted as part of the call for reform in the mathematics curriculum. The 28 papers presented were: "Who Assesses Whom and To What Purpose?" (Leone Burton; "Assessment of the Learned…

This conference proceedings presents 17 papers which examine quality assurance and evaluation in higher education, including methodologies, procedures, and ideas from various nations. The papers include: (1) "Quality Assurance in Higher Education" (Malcolm Frazer); (2) "Academic Standards Panels in Australia" (Kwong Lee Dow);…

The prevalent use of student ratings in teaching evaluations, particularly the reliability of such data, has been debated for many years. Reports in the literature indicate that there are many factors influencing student perceptions of teaching. Three of these factors were investigated at the University of Western Australia, namely the broad…

A study was conducted to review the concept of validity in the context of vocational education and training (VET) in Australia. The study included a review of literature, case studies, presentation of key findings, and recommendation of a tool to guide assessors. An eight-faceted approach to validity, based on Nitko, was developed, with each…