Teachers attending the course Assessment, Grading and Feedback

Higher Education in Focus meets …

… three teachers attending the course “Assessment, Grading and Feedback”, who took the time to talk to us during a coffee break. Why did they decide to take the course, and are they facing any challenges regarding assessment, grading, and feedback? What insights have they gained from the course so far, and what might they implement in their future teaching?

Linnéa Idling Vilmunen, lecturer at the Department of Scandinavian Languages

I appreciate that these courses are available and try to attend one every semester. I will be involved in course development next term and felt that this course was a good fit for thinking about constructive alignment and ensuring that learning outcomes are clearly linked to the course content. I teach Swedish as a second language and find it challenging to create clear and effective questions in speaking and reading exams, for example.

One of my main insights so far has been the use of peer review which might be really useful in our “Swedish for Academics” courses. For example, participants might present their research and receive feedback from their peers. As always, my main takeaway has been the opportunity to meet colleagues from other disciplines and learn about what they do. In this particular course, two colleagues from my department and I have formed a “critical friend group” so we can think about ways to apply our insights together!

Bobins Augustine, researcher at the Department of Electrical Engineering

My main motivation for attending the course is to become a better teacher by helping students to learn more effectively and ensuring that they truly understand what I teach. When assessing students, I want to be confident that they have genuinely learned the subject. In this regard, the strategies presented in the course have been very useful, for example the use of formative and summative assessment strategies.

Generative AI, as an evolving technology, will pose a challenge for us as teachers since it will be much harder to detect. Therefore, we all need to think about how we can modify our educational strategies so that students will learn without simply relying on AI to provide the answers. I don´t think we should discourage students from using AI. Instead, students must learn how to use AI as a tool – without using the tool as a replacement for their own knowledge.

Maria Skeppstedt, research engineer at the Department of ALM (Archival science, Library & information science, Museum & heritage studies, and digital humanities) and The Centre for Digital Humanities and Social Sciences at Uppsala University (CDHU)

I took the “Course development course” last autumn and found it really rewarding. In general, pedagogical courses are very relevant since you can immediately start applying what you´ve learned. Another big advantage is the opportunity to discuss ideas with colleagues from other subject areas.

As a research engineer, my teaching accounts for only 20% of my time, which sometimes makes it tricky to shift my mindset to “teaching”. Due to time limitations, it´s also challenging to provide thorough and useful feedback. Another challenge is ensuring that the students have completed the work themselves, rather than using AI or help from friends. The “Assessment, grading and feedback”-course has reinforced the course design I recently developed with one of my colleagues – for example, quizzes, peer review, and targeted feedback related to the students’ final assignment. I also appreciate the opportunity to reflect on the theory behind practical methods and to envision possibilities for future course development. The course has given me even more confidence moving forward!

The course “Assessment, Grading and Feedback” is offered once a year and is equivalent to one week of full-time work. The course is taught in both English and Swedish, in a mixed format. Presentations and instructions are given in English. When taking part in group work, small group discussions and individual texts, participants can choose to use either Swedish or English. During the course, participants work on the development of assessment, evaluation and feedback for their own courses within their subject areas.