Exemplars are samples which illustrate dimensions of quality and enable students to understand assessment expectations. The theoretical basis for using exemplars lies principally in social constructivist approaches to assessment and the notion of tacit knowledge. Through a constructivist grounded theory methodology, this paper theorises how twelve…

Current conceptualisations of feedback contend that it should be a learner-centred process. In practice, however, text-based feedback comments from teachers are a convenient and common source of feedback information, despite appearing to be contra-indicative of learner-centred models. This raises the question of how teachers can tackle the design…

The use of standards-based assessment (SBA) has gained prominence in higher education due to a wide range of research evidence that supports its effectiveness in improving learning and teaching. Although the concept is widely used in academic discourse and practice, it has multiple interpretations which have led to diverse assessment practices to…

Universities are an important part of the process of change taking place in society. However, this is often overshadowed by these institutions giving priority to technocratic models in the relationship between science and society. In this context, according to Habermas, theories can serve to clarify practical questions and guide praxis into the…

Criteria and standards-based assessment models are increasingly being adopted by universities as effective practice. However the promise of these models of assessment may not be realised unless teachers can find ways of making criteria and standards understandable to students. Exemplars or examples of previous students' work of high and low…

The plentiful and steadily increasing literature on teaching and learning in higher education has produced a number of helpful frameworks and guidelines that can be applied to the development and communication of assessment practice. The continued prevalence of much imprecise, unclear and otherwise confusing terminology around the discussion of…

Work-based learning is used and assessed in higher education a variety of ways. In this paper we look particularly at the differences between the assessment of WBL when it is constructed as a field of study, i.e., using generic and transdisciplinary criteria and when it is constructed as a mode of study, i.e., when it is assessed using subject…

Presents a model of quality assurance for colleges and universities, distilled from key concepts in the literature about quality assurance and higher education culture and practice. The model has continuous quality improvement in student learning at its center, and includes elements of institutional values, faculty evaluation and development,…