Key Assessment Strategy principles: Holistic design, ILO alignment, progressive, ongoing and developmental, sequenced and connected; inclusivity embedded, range of assessments, clear assessments and criteria, manageable timing and load; opportunities to apply learning, produced for a wider audience, collaboration and feedback, creativity and agency, has value beyond the classroom
What is the assessment approach?
In Bench to Bedside and Beyond, Year 2 students on programmes in the School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine work in Active Learning Groups to combine theory in biomedical science with clinical experience. This involves students creating three joint outputs: a patient information sheet, a public information video, and an outreach activity plan, each based on a different case. They then select one case to explore in more depth, through an individual essay, before demonstrating their learning through an exam. Group working is therefore critical to their achievement of the learning outcomes for the unit.
How is this approach different? What are some of the design features?
Students work in groups of nine, assigned largely at random. However, great care is taken to place international students in pairs within the larger groups; students who are anxious about assessment are paired with those who are well placed to support them.
For each case, students engage in three sessions with a facilitator. In the first, they discuss the case and divide up the research they need to carry out. In the second, they use lists, tables, or slides to present the information they have collected, checking that all learning outcomes have been addressed. In the third session, students finalise their output.
Students are assessed on their joint output, with all members of the group receiving the same grade provided they have attended the sessions and contributed. Contributions are logged using OneNote and monitored.
“The administrator can look through and check there’s content from everybody. We don’t look at the quantity and say, ‘This isn’t enough.’ Students do that themselves. However, if a student isn’t contributing and doesn’t tell us why, they’re given a mark of zero.”
– Ann Williams
Students are encouraged to take on different responsibilities, with some roles such as chair and note taker rotated after each case. Students are not required to present, if they feel uncomfortable; there are other opportunities for them to contribute, such as writing, design or editing.
The process of group work itself is not assessed. However, students who engage more actively in group work tend to perform better in the individual essay and exam.
What was the rationale for this approach? What problems or challenges was it trying to address?
The group assessment approach was designed to fill a gap in the Year 2 curriculum. It was felt that existing second year units covered the molecular basis of disease but did not address the translational aspects – the impact of disease, prevention and treatment on the patient experience – and therefore did not offer students sufficient choice. Bench to Bedside and Beyond not only helped address these aspects, but also widened the variety of assessments on the programme.
“If you ask students to produce a video about antibiotic resistance, they have to know the subject in depth to be able to convey it to the public. It’s the same with a patient information sheet – you have to have a detailed understanding of the topic.”
– Ann Williams
Through engaging in Active Learning Groups in which each member feels responsible for shared success and able to contribute, students can develop a broad variety of professional skills, including teamworking, effective communication and self-directed learning.
How does this approach reflect the strategic priorities of Integrated Assessment Design, Designed for All and Authentic Assessment?
Integrated Assessment Design
By working in Active Learning Groups towards the three outputs and on the associated individual essay, students build on and apply knowledge from other Year 2 units. They also develop a better clinical understanding and develop group work and oral presentation skills, which will support their learning in Year 3.
Designed for All
Group assessment provides opportunities for all students to play to their strengths and achieve the learning outcomes for the unit. The specific approach to group assessment in this unit, with a broad variety of tasks and outputs and the scope for students to take on different roles within their Active Learning Groups, makes the assessment yet more inclusive.
Students are provided with clear guidelines on what is expected from them.
Authentic Assessment
Engaging in case-based group assessments in Bench to Bedside and Beyond enables students to apply theory to practice, addressing contemporary challenges in the discipline, and challenges them to think critically about both the subject content and the purpose of their learning. Students find it motivating to work with their peers to create and represent knowledge in new ways, gaining experience relevant for a biomedical science career.
The assessment design enables students to exercise their agency, both in their approach to creating the outputs and in their selection of a case to research in greater depth.
Each of the three outputs is produced for an audience beyond the marker. Not only are students in other groups invited to view the resources, but the information sheets, videos and slides are shared with prospective students at open days. In some cases, the resources could be used by practising clinicians, giving them genuine value outside the classroom.
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