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Sharing the latest education assessment research

Register now for online sessions on 27 and 28 September 2021.

Students taking an exam in a classroom

Following a second summer in the UK where public examinations were not taken and grades were instead based on teacher judgements, there continues to be great public interest in issues relating to assessment and learning. This seminar will provide research insights into the effect of the pandemic on this generation of students and their teachers, and some of the latest thinking about the future of assessment in the UK.

The seminar is free to attend and will be held online, consisting of five sessions spread over two half-days. It will cover the themes of:


•             the future of qualifications and assessment
•             comparative judgement
•             accessibility and inclusivity
•             marking and teacher assessment.

 

Presentations will be given by colleagues from across Cambridge University Press & Assessment, AQA, Pearson, No More Marking, Ofqual, SQA and CCEA.

 

Register for your free place

The programme

 

Monday 27 September

09:00 – 10:30

Session 1 – the future, part 1: stakeholder perspectives (Chair: Gill Elliott)

 

Effective teaching and learning during the pandemic

Alison Rodrigues and Lynda Bramwell

Cambridge Assessment International Education

How well do we understand wellbeing? Teachers’ experiences in an extraordinary educational era

Chris Jellis

Cambridge CEM

The use of remote invigilation: awarding organisation views on its introduction and impact

Diana Tonin and Stuart Cadwallader

Ofqual

The future of qualifications and assessment in England: stakeholder consultation outcomes for bottom-up reform

Hayley Dalton

Pearson

Student voice: shaping the future

Corina Balaban, Katy Finch and Jeanne Marie Ryan

AQA

 

11:00 – 12:30

Session 2 – comparative judgement (Chair: Tom Benton)

 

Comparative judgement for moderation: a feasibility study

Lucy Chambers and Carmen Vidal Rodeiro

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Awarding using comparative judgement: do judges attend to construct-irrelevant features?

Lucy Chambers

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Robustness of script evidence in comparative judgement awarding activities

Jo Williamson

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

The classification accuracy and consistency of comparative judgement of writing compared to rubric-based teacher assessment

Chris Wheadon

No More Marking

 

Tuesday 28 September

 

09:15 – 10:30

Session 3 – accessibility and inclusivity (Chair: Irenka Suto)

 

Equality of access to access arrangements and their impact on students' performance

Carmen Vidal Rodeiro

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Is the inclusivity paradox of technology in education holding back onscreen assessment?

Hayley White and Mark Campbell

Pearson

Working definitions of error used within Cambridge Assessment

Nicky Rushton

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

From flying a plane to creating exam papers: how the SHELLO model can help us minimise errors in assessment materials.

Sylvia Vitello

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

 

11:00 – 12:30

Session 4 – marking and teacher assessment (Chair: Tom Bramley)

 

How good can marking be? Exploring the marking accuracy that can be achieved for an examined GCSE English Language component

Stephen Holmes

Ofqual

Comparing levels-only marking and comparative judgement

Tom Benton

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Automarking of short free-text responses in science

Gareth Wadge, Tom Sutch and Nick Raikes

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Scotland’s alternative certification model 2020/21 as intended and realised

Beth Black and Martyn Ware

SQA

A quantitative analysis of the factors affecting centre assessed grades (CAGs

Tim Stratton

Ofqual

 

13:30 – 15:00

Session 5 – The future, part 2 (Chair: Jackie Greatorex)

 

More like Germany’s? System and ideological tensions in the UK government attempt to make vocational education and training (VET) in England more like the German model

Tony Leech

OCR

Next generation Higher National Qualifications in Scotland: continuity and change

Eleanor Boyd and Emma McLauglin

SQA

Challenges for 2022 in awarding grades in Northern Ireland

John Truman and Pamela Larmour

CCEA

The potential impact of unconditional university offers on A level attainment in England: evidence to inform the debate on proposed changes to university admissions

Rachel Taylor and Nadir Zanini

Ofqual

Using educational research evidence in an agile product development

Sarah Hughes

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

 

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