Self-directed learning, despite its growing popularity in education, has challenged conventional assessment practice which often foregrounds the presentation of identical conditions to ensure reliability. This article discusses the results of a case study of university academic English teachers' perceptions and reported practices of assessing…

Even though there are four English language skills in the Indonesia's national curriculum at upper secondary schools, each of these skills is given an unequal emphasis since only reading and listening skills are formally tested in the national examination. Although writing competence possesses a particular stake as the determinant of students'…

Management by Objective through Open Performance Review and Appraisal System (OPRAS) was introduced in Tanzania for evaluation of public servants work performance in 2004. The aim of this study was to investigate how teachers perceive the implementation of OPRAS as a mechanism of assessing their work performance and making them accountable for…

Child assessment practices in English and Korean preschools were compared by analysing data from interviews with educators, examples of child assessment, and official documents from each country. Child assessment in England was systematically implemented and characterised by several methodological and procedural strengths, whereas assessment in…

Background and purpose: Chemistry examinations can favour the deployment of algorithmic procedures like Le Chatelier's Principle (LCP) rather than reasoning using chemical principles. This study investigated the explanatory resources which high school students use to answer equilibrium problems and whether the marks given for examination answers…

Assessment of higher order learning outcomes such as critical thinking, problem solving and creativity has remained a challenge for universities. While newer technologies such as social networking tools have the potential to support these intended outcomes, academics' assessment practice is slow to change. University mission statements and unit…

Constraints in resourcing and student dissatisfaction with assessment feedback mean that the effectiveness of our feedback practices has never been so important. Drawing on findings from a three-year study focused on student engagement with feedback, this paper reveals the limited extent to which effectiveness can be accurately measured and…

In high-stakes writing assessments, rater training in the use of a rating scale does not eliminate variability in grade attribution. This realisation has been accompanied by research that explores possible sources of rater variability, such as rater background or rating scale type. However, there has been little consideration thus far of…

A new reform movement in Japanese tertiary education has emerged which is more economy centered, more market sensitive, and more influenced by a government shift towards decentralization. With the dramatic decline in the 18 year old population, a buyer's market has led to the introduction of student evaluation of teaching surveys (SETs) partly as…

This article offers an account of a doctoral insider research project that became problematic. The project was investigating mathematics teaching in a university in the UK, and by contrasting the research account with research diary entries pertaining to two interviewees, different interpretations of the interview data are evident. These…

This paper forms part of an exploration of assessment on one part-time higher education (HE) course: an in-service, professional qualification for teachers and trainers in the learning and skills sector which is delivered on a franchise basis across a network of further education colleges in the north of England. This paper proposes that the…

This article explores the experiences of adult learners and tutors on a particular externally assessed distance-learning degree programme. On this programme, assignments are set, reviewed and graded independently of the on-site tutor by the external awarding body. An analysis of eight interviews with four tutors and four graduates from one such…

Purpose: This paper aims to report the process and outcomes of a case study which introduced internal evaluation procedures into academic departments of a university in Iran. The purpose of the study was to identify what benefits could arise from using internal evaluation, and what obstacles existed to its successful introduction.…

Describes steps taken in developing an evaluation system for distance teaching at the Open Junior High School system in Indonesia. Reviews data collection techniques, and discusses advantages and disadvantages of evaluation studies. Presents a historical background of the system, and lists the system's strengths and weaknesses discovered via…

Seventeen Canadian teachers and administrators were interviewed to determine their perspectives on reading education. Forty-two interviews were transcribed and evaluated. Preliminary analysis reveals that assessment as a social-psychological phenomenon is filled with tensions, contradictions, and dilemmas that cannot be solved simply through…