Authentic Learning and Assessment for International Students in Business Schools
The Practice
The University of Bristol – in addition to numerous other universities – has embraced the development of authentic learning and assessment. This is intended to prepare students for their post-education futures by assisting them in developing skills they will be able to utilise beyond the classroom.
Additionally, global challenges have become an important aspect of the content taught across various programmes within the Business School. The latter refers to social and environmental sustainability, exploitation, social inequalities, and so on.
Combined, this suggests the need to develop a ‘transformative authenticity’ whereby students are prepared for the workplace as well as being expected to engage with important contemporary global issues. This raises various questions about what authenticity means for international postgraduate students who are mobile, may be working and living outside of the UK after their studies, and how relevant transformative agendas are for those whose home country context may differ from the UK.
The project explored these issues by collecting data via interviews and focus groups, with a total of 54 student participating, and one student partner who acted as a research assistant.
Findings
The findings reveal a mixture of views among students on the question of whether existing forms of assessment are ‘authentic’ and helpful for their futures. There is agreement that assessments should help prepare students for their futures and careers, but there is no consensus on what form assessments should take to achieve this. Similarly, while it is not clear that transformative agendas always translate easily to other country contexts or work futures, they are valued by students on a personal level as being important and interesting to study.
Impact
The research findings can be used in two areas. First, to help inform decisions about forms of assessment that have a more international and diverse focus in order to connect with a wider range of post-education contexts for students. Second, the research could inform how educators communicate the reasons and importance for including transformative agendas in teaching to ensure students understand the rationale for their inclusion. As for short-term impact, the results of the research have been presented to the Business School’s Education Committee, and within a research seminar series.
Next Steps
The next immediate step is to complete and submit a research article to an appropriate pedagogy journal. Beyond this, the aim will be to continue communicating the findings, and to consider and embed the implications for pedagogical practice within the Business School.
Contact
Christopher Pesterfield, cp16102@bristol.ac.uk
