Issues in Peer Assessment and E-Learning

Peer assessment has been described as a collaborative method of assessment which promotes active and reflective learning. It is particularly useful in higher educational context, since university students are required to involve in more autonomous and student-centered activities. Therefore, university instructors should consider alternative forms of assessment. However, peer assessment is often neglected by instructors and students are not prepared to employ peer practices. The aim of the current literature review is to analyze the previous studies on peer assessment in higher education. Particularly, it will describe the reasons for using peer assessment, its forms, as well as benefits and challenges of employing peer assessment in higher education. Therefore, the findings will raise the awareness of teachers and students regarding advantages and limitations of peer assessment technique. To achieve this goal, the review of 30 articles is presented from the various databases, namely: Google Scholar, Eric, and JSTOR between the 2015-2024 years.

Peer assessment in higher education has been studied for decades. Despite the substantial amount of research carried out, peer assessment has yet to make significant advances. This review identifies themes of recent research and highlights the challenges that have hampered its advance. Most of these challenges arise from the manual nature of peer assessment practices, which prove intractable as the number of students involved increases. Practitioners of the discipline are urged to forge affiliations with closely related fields and other disciplines, such as computer science, in order to overcome these challenges.

Peer assessment has been shown as a productive strategy for supporting higher education students to learn from each other, yet it also evokes technical, pedagogical, and emotional challenges. This study seeks to benefit from the affordances of peer assessment while reducing typical tensions. Assessing-the-Assessors is an innovative approach to design and conduct web-supported multi-cycle peer assessment activities. The main notion in this approach is that peer assessment is conducted as an exercise to enhance learning; students are rewarded as assessors rather than assessees, while the formal grades for artifacts are provided by the instructor. This approach was implemented in 25 higher-education courses in various contexts with 848 students. Findings indicate that courses with multiple cycles of assessment were highly effective in promoting learning in three aspects: learners, instructors and social climate. Learners refined their artifacts, improved their ability to provide assessment, and increased their confidence in their ability to serve as assessors. Instructors were able to easily distinguish between student bias and their own bias, and to handle it appropriately. Social climate was productive; students' attitudes were positive and their commitment was high. We recommend instructors to utilize the Assessing-the-Assessors approach for increasing the benefits of peer assessment in higher education.

The purpose of this study is to test a model that classifies some sentiment as positive or negative from some feedback in Spanish that are generated through peer assessment in Higher Education. The Supervised Machine Learning method is implemented. Several experiments are performed with a manually tagged data set to test different combinations of N-grams with Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF), and classification algorithms: Multinomial Naive Bayes, Support Vector Machine, Logistic Regression, and also Random Forest, in order to obtain the right combination that gives the best performance. The simulation results displayed that the Support Vector Machine classifier with the combination of 1-grams + 2-grams + TF-IDF is the best model in Precision, Recall and F-Measure.

The examination-oriented assessment methods have been widely employed in Macau but the over-dependence on such methods may hinder students’ balanced development of mathematical proficiency (Morrison & Tang, 2002; Schoenfeld, 2007). Peer assessment may compensate the limitation of those methods by engaging students actively to assess. However, little research has focused on the implementation of peer assessment in Macau secondary school. This dissertation reports a study which implemented a five-step peer assessment in an eighth grade mathematics lesson in Macau based on Ploegh at al.’s (2009) and Tillema et al.’s (2011) frameworks, in which the quality criteria are taken into account for revising the procedures. 16 students participated in three action cycles and the action plan was modified to explore how the changes to the peer assessment may influence students’ learning and students’ views towards the implementation of peer assessment.
\n
\nThe results show that it is effective to establish a formative peer assessment to promote students’ mathematical learning in Macau by adopting the frameworks. The students in general held positive attitude towards the implementation of the peer assessment. They regarded it as a fair assessment, appreciated the extra opportunity to discuss mathematics, and treated it as a way to collect more feedback on their strength and weakness. Peer assessment also served as a learning activity which helped them gain deeper understanding of mathematics.
\n
\nIt was found that students’ involvement in the setting of the assessment criteria, making judgment and writing narrative feedback improved students’ use of mathematical language to express their ideas. Providing more opportunities to judge and discuss mathematical problems also fostered the development of their mathematical proficiency. This study also reveals that asking peers for feedback and discussion about the feedback is an efficient way to develop students’ adaptive reasoning. The students’ change of performance in the action cycles also suggests that peer assessment has the potential to help the students access higher level of development in their zone of proximal development (ZPD) and balance the role of authority in mathematics classroom.

Assessment in Higher Education (HE) is widely accepted as fundamental to the learning process. The assessment strategy employed in a programme plays a major role in how, what and when students engage and as such influences the depth of learning that occurs. A well-structured holistic approach to assessment within a programme can be of a major benefit to both students and academics. The use of Peer Assessment (PA) and other more formative tools assists in the development of self-directed independent learners. A critical evaluation of the effectiveness of programme assessment strategies and methodologies involves the analysis of the current practice and the perceptions of all involved. As a starting point in the development of a framework for the cohesive inclusion of PA in the B.Sc(Hons) Medical Science degree programme in GMIT this paper presents an exploratory review of the current assessment methodology in use. Methodologically, following a documentary analysis approach, the programme’s module descriptors were reviewed for content related to assessment methods in use. Staff and students of the programme were both surveyed to gain an insight into current practice and to document students’ perceptions of their experience of assessment and of peer assessment in particular. The main findings demonstrated a marked lack of transparency and detail in relation to assessment strategy in the module documentation. Staff are using diverse assessment methods in this programme, including PA, albeit at individual module level. Students’ perceptions and experiences of assessment and PA is overall positive. The programme and the students would benefit from a more structured programmatic approach to the inclusion of PA.

Volumes of research have documented the implementation of peer assessment in higher education (Falchikov, 1986; Huba & Freed, 2000). The literature doesn’t denote the impact of peer assessment on teacher education students. This study filled that void by investigating first-year teacher education students’ views of peer assessment.

Informed by the effective feedback model, the study explored the efficacy of peer assessment (PA) regarding feedback content, strategy, and uptake along with their intertwined relationships in translator education. Multiple sources of data, including students’ translation drafts and their revised work, audio recordings of PA presentations and discussions, questionnaires, and teaching materials were collected. The results revealed that the students tended to provide direct correction and reformulation on lower-level language issues. While they positively responded to the peer feedback they received, the explicitness of the feedback and solutions to the problems significantly influenced their responses. The study also discovered associations between content and strategy, as well as between strategy and uptake, while no connection was found between content and uptake. The study contributes to the extant research on PA in higher education by investigating its efficacy from a multidimensional perspective and provides practical implications for its effective implementation in translation classrooms.

Feedback is an integral part of education and there is a substantial body of trials exploring and confirming its effect on learning. This evidence base comes mostly from studies of compulsory school age children; there is very little evidence to support effective feedback practice at higher education, beyond the frameworks and strategies advocated by those claiming expertise in the area. This systematic review aims to address this gap. We review causal evidence from trials of feedback and formative assessment in higher education. Although the evidence base is currently limited, our results suggest that low stakes‐quizzing is a particularly powerful approach and that there are benefits for forms of peer and tutor feedback, although these depend on implementation factors. There was mixed evidence for praise, grading and technology‐based feedback. We organise our findings into several evidence‐grounded categories and discuss the next steps for the field and evidence‐informed feedback practice in universities. Context and implications Rationale for this study To gain a better understanding of effective formative assessment and feedback approaches in higher education (HE). To promote a more evidence‐informed approach to teaching and learning in universities. Why the new findings matter The findings highlight a small number of promising strategies for formative assessment and feedback in HE. They also draw attention to a lack of (quality) evidence in this area overall. Implications for policy‐makers and practitioners Universities and their regulators/funders should be encouraging and supporting more, high‐quality research in this important area. Researchers in the field also need to look to developing more ambitious, higher‐quality studies which are likely to provide robust, causal conclusions about academic effectiveness (or other outcomes). Those involved in teaching and learning in university should use the findings to inform evidence‐informed approaches to formative assessment and feedback and to challenge approaches which do not appear to have foundations in strong evidence. Students could be made more aware of teaching and learning approaches that are likely to support their academic progress.

In 2011 the authors created a model of selfand peer-assessment known as Authentic Self and Peer Assessment for Learning (ASPAL) in an attempt to better engage seemingly disengaged students in their undergraduate coursework. The model focuses on authentic assessment tasks and engages students by involving them in every step of the process from the creation of the criteria on which they will be marked, through to providing exemplars of work, pilot marking and providing peer feedback. This article examines the ASPAL process with regard to whether or not the students are better engaged in their studies as a result of taking part in this process. Although the results are not definitive, the present study shows that the majority of students who undertook the process found it beneficial and were open to try it again. This article seeks to open a discussion as to the capacity for a specific model of selfand peer-assessment to better engage students in their learning and discern the reasons why students found the model engaging so as to better inform future applications of the model and how it can be applied to a wider audience.

This study explores the implementation of peer assessment with a group of students studying physics at Advanced level in a post-secondary school in Malta. The study that draws on action research methodology looks at how the views of students regarding peer assessment evolve as they engage with peer assessment. The research involved the actual implementation of an apprenticeship model of peer assessment and looked at the issues faced by the students. The results of the study show that students were very much immersed in a traditional assessment culture and needed to be trained to develop peer assessment skills. Student concerns related to fairness, regarding their abilities as assessors and dependence on the teacher as ‘expert’ remained unchanged as the students engaged with peer assessment. Successful implementation of peer assessment therefore requires a re-examination of the role of student and teachers as assessors within a safe learning environment.

Reviewed by: Outcomes Assessment in Higher Education: Views and Perspectives Cia Verschelden Outcomes Assessment in Higher Education: Views and Perspectives, ed. Peter Hernon and Robert E. Dugan. Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited, 2004. 350 p. $50(ISBN: 1-59158-098-6) In the fall of 2000, the Higher Learning Commission visited our campus on a re-accreditation site visit. The following spring we received their report—we were reaccredited but they would be back for a "focused visit" in 2005 to look at our progress on assessment of student learning. That summer, I took on the task of "capacity building" in an effort to develop a positive and sustainable assessment of student learning culture at a large, public land-grant institution. I have since met with dozens of people to talk about student learning outcomes, assessment criteria and measures, and using assessment results to improve student learning. I found it almost impossible to get through this book! In virtually every chapter, I found myself taking time to highlight interesting or essential parts, make notes in the margins, or notes to myself about what I need to do with this or that section. My notes were comments like: "The Provost must see this ASAP"; "This is exactly the argument that I've been having with Professor __________ in biology for two years"; "Every department head needs this list and this chart tomorrow;" "I told them that's how it's supposed to happen!" This book addresses real issues. It reflects on precisely the kinds of challenges that I and my colleagues from across the country experience every day in our work. I found that many of the articles provided a barometer of sorts for me. I found myself assessing our progress and reflecting on the "opportunities" still ahead. The experts in this volume have described the path that promises to lead eventually to an effective "culture of assessment" at our institutions. In several of the articles, the authors provide progress checklists, which one can use to mark off accomplishments and see very clearly the direction and purpose of the next step. When I started in this work three years ago, I began to create an assessment of student learning handbook for department heads. I included three papers as critical background reading: "Assessment Measures and Methods: Advice from NCA," by Cecilia Lopez (North Central Association Commission on Institutions of Higher Education: Opportunities for Improvement: Advice from Consultant-Evaluators on Programs to Assess Student Learning, March 1996); "Assessment of Student Achievement: Levels of Implementation," from NCA's Handbook of Accreditation, 2nd edition (March 2000); and "Moving from Paperwork to Pedagogy: Channeling Intellectual [End Page 138] Curiosity into a Commitment to Assessment," by Peggy Maki, former director of assessment for the American Association for Higher Education (AAHE Bulletin, May 2002, pp. 3-5). In addition, I highly recommended Mary Huba and Jann Freed's Learner-Centered Assessment on College Campuses (Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 2000), itself ahandbook of sorts for faculty who are beginning to develop a "culture of evidence" within their degree programs. Now, in the fall of 2004, I am recommending to the provost that every College Assessment Committee have a copy of Outcomes Assessment in Higher Education. This book offers four things: (1) a review of the mandate for the kind of accountability that is addressed by assessment of student learning processes (Chapter 4, "Institutional Assessment Planning"); (2) a series of very practical and concise "how-to" instructions that reflect what I have seen work (Chapter 5, "Developing an Assessment Plan to Learn about Student Learning"); (3) some models of specific approaches that share with us some of the barriers that were encountered and overcome along the way to effective change (Chapter 9, "Evolving an Assessment of Impact on Pedagogy, Learning, and Library Support of Teaching with Digital Images" and Chapter 10, "Outcomes Assessment in a College Library: An Instructional Case Study"); and (4) a summary of the progress that has been made in colleges and universities across the country so that we have a context in which to evaluate our progress (Chapter 3, "A Decade of Assessing Student Learning: What We Have Learned, and What is Next"). One of the...

In response to the increasing demand for graduates who are not only proficient in their field but also possess critical thinking skills and global competence, this study investigates the impact of innovative assessment practices on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners in Algerian higher education institutions. With the evolving landscape of education, traditional assessment methods are being increasingly replaced by more dynamic, learner-centered approaches aimed at fostering 21st century skills. This research employs a descriptive mixed-methods design, combining quantitative and qualitative data to explore the perceptions of 20 EFL instructors and 150 students across five Algerian universities. The study focuses on alternative assessment strategies such as project-based learning, digital portfolios, and peer assessments. Through a combination of student questionnaires, instructor interviews, and document analysis of student portfolios and project work, the research investigates the effects of these innovative methods on student engagement, critical thinking, and the development of global competence. The results reveal the positive influence of non-traditional assessments on learner motivation, analytical abilities, and intercultural awareness. Additionally, the study assesses the challenges faced by instructors and institutions in implementing these approaches and provides recommendations for enhancing their effectiveness. The findings suggest that innovative assessment practices play a crucial role in preparing EFL students for the demands of the globalized world, contributing to both their academic success and their ability to engage meaningfully in diverse, international contexts.

In health-related professions, education has unique challenges. Problem-based learning can be extremely useful and driven by strategies such as group-work (GW) and peer assessment (PA), which are both used as formative and assessment tools. This study aimed to explore experience and perceptions about GW and PA held by educators and students in optometry. In a first survey, 45 Italian educators (43.8 ± 13.0 years old) of optometric clinical modules answered an email questionnaire investigating their attitudes towards GW and PA. In a second survey, 66 3rd-year undergraduates (22.5 ± 2.0 years old) answered a questionnaire investigating the perception and attitudes towards GW and PA at the beginning and at the end of a module of Advanced Optometry structured with a formative/summative GW activity with a final PA. Two-thirds of optometry educators declared they use GW, but not as a summative assessment tool. Only a quarter of the sample answered that they used PA at least once. Educators’ attitudes towards GW were more positive than PA (p < 0.001). About 60% and 80% of the interviewed students stated they have never participated in GW and PA, respectively. Students’ pre-course attitudes towards GW and PA resulted in values close to the middle of the scale with no significant differences and positive correlations between them (p < 0.001). When students’ GW attitudes were compared with educators’ GW attitudes, the latter were more positive. Students’ post-course attitudes towards GW and PA were enhanced. Although GW and PA are considered very good strategies to improve teaching, the results of the present study have demonstrated that the use of these strategies in Italian optometric higher education is limited. However, the study has also demonstrated that Italian optometry educators have positive attitudes towards “social” teaching strategies especially for GW. Furthermore, optometry students showed improved attitudes towards these strategies once exposed to them. Overall, the results of the study open the possibility to integrate “social” teaching strategies to improve the effectiveness of optometry education.

From a social constructivist viewpoint, learning is a constructive act of the learner. Several different assessment methods are used in assessing students, which have implications when discussing knowledge construction in higher education. Teachers’ views about different formats and methods of assessment were examined by interviewing teachers in higher education. This work-in-progress suggests that students' perceptions about assessment have considerable influence on their approaches to learning, but that organizational and teachers’ perceptions of institutional objectives are significant factors in choosing assessment methods. Although the teachers interviewed agree in the constructive act of the learner, the assessment is still more of a teacher-centred process for teachers with little experience of networked learning environments. This is also partly because of the restraints of university examination rules, as well as universities adaptation to the Bologna Declaration (1999). Being gradually acculturated and assimilated into the networked learning community in the form of an apprenticeship should help in making teachers more inclined towards a student-centred approach and to using peer assessment.