Visiting Scholars

Larry Michaelsen

During his second visit to the Faculty, Professor Larry Michaelsen met with academics and conducted a Faculty Forum on effective use of groupwork and case studies. Larry presented a number of reasons why group work is seen as a hindrance by students and can turn into a negative esperience. In traditional groupwork, assignments that lead to students splitting up the workload, problems of free-riding and unequal effort are prevalent. These problems can be readily prevented by using the 4S's when designing the groupwork assessments. The 4S's are:

1. Significant problem: Students are given a problem that is authentic for the unit and has relevance and application in their lives e.g. relating to discussion of the issues for the Sydney Metro.
2. Same problem: Each group works on the same problem, case, or question. This way they all know as much as others to be able to effectively critique and care about the other group's responses.
3. Specific choice: Each group is applies theoretical concepts to make the specific choice. This way no group can split up the task and all benefit from developing the rationale for their choice.
4. Simultaneously report: Groups report their specific choice simultaneously (from Michaelsen, 1997).

Using the 4S's strategy usually reduces or eliminates workload and free-rider problems, while making the task more interesting and engaging for students. Research demonstrates that through such activities students learn more and are much happier with their groupwork experiences.

To get further acquainted with Larry's approach you can use the following resources:

• Three Keys to Using Learning Groups Effectively*
• Thriving in Academe: Team based learning - article that talks about mutual accountability as a driver for student engagement**
• The Faculty's TBL website
• Larry's TBL website

Margaret Price

For 3 weeks in March 2009, Professor in Learning and Assessment from Oxford Brookes UK, Margaret Price, visited the Faculty. During her stay she conducted Faculty Forums on Assessment, Feedback and Large classes, a workshop on Preparing the Groundwork for Aligning your Assessment and a university seminar on Shaping Assessment for the Future. All related to issues and best practices in areas of assessment, assessment standards and feedback. Below is a brief summary of the forums and workshop that were conducted. Almost 100% of participants at her events found them useful and informative. In response to their feedback this web page has been created and will contain PDF files of all the presentations Professor Price has done at University of Sydney:

• Could do better! - A presentation for Learning and Teaching Associates about Assessment Standards Knowledge Exchange (ASKe) and their assessment feedback project. General overview of opportunities to improve assessment practices.
• Assessment: Feedback, Criteria and Standards - A Faculty Forum presentation introducing best practice in assessment standards, importance of student engagement with assessment criteria and practical implications of best practice in assessment.
• Feedback: Engagement and Effectiveness - A Faculty Forum presentation discussing how to engage students with feedback and how to deal with issues related to feedback.
• Assessment with Large classes - A Faculty Forum presentation discussing issues of assessment in large classes.
• Making a case for Peer-review/feedback and assessment - A presentation explaining why peer-review is useful and how to integrate the practice with current assessment.
• Assessment: Perils and Pitfalls - preparing groundwork for alignment - A Faculty workshop dealing with practical issues in assessment and curriculum alignment.
• Shaping Assessment for the Future - A presentation for senior university staff on present and future of assessment standards