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This QAA Collaborative Enhancement Project poses a critical enquiry into what is termed the 'mysterious quotients' of commonly used undergraduate assessment terms and phrases.

The maintenance of national standards across the higher education sector relies upon alignment by each higher education provider of their local standards with the descriptors set out in the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications.

Concerns around a lack of consistency and a perceived trend towards grade inflation has resulted in the Advance HE Degree Standards Project which provides professional development for external examiners in their role of safeguarding national standards, and promotes opportunities for the calibration of standards through social moderation activities between academics.

However, a sector-wide shared understanding of the language of assessment and standards amongst academics does not automatically apply to students - for them, this language often remains unintelligible.

It is important for students to understand how the national standards are applied in the context of their discipline and programme. What must they do, and 'what does good look like' in relation to the assessments they are asked to undertake?

The University of the West of England, working with the University of Hertfordshire, University of Brighton and University of Greenwich, will conduct extensive field research including surveys and workshops to inform development of a toolkit for staff and students to support dialogue, transparency and shared responsibility in the assessment processes.

The aim of the toolkit is to:

reduce student anxiety over assessment terms

lessen staff time dealing with queries and complaints

decrease the likelihood of inconsistency in assessment standards

reduce awarding gaps

increase the use of more accessible and inclusive language

provide improved transparency around assessment

increase NSS scores on assessment and feedback

provide a collective understanding of the standards used for assessment by staff and students.

The project team are disseminating findings and outputs at sector events including:

QAA Evolving Student Engagement Conference (June 2021)

'From Both Sides Now': Reflecting upon staff-student perspectives on a collaborative research project - access the presentation recording

Advance HE Assessment and Feedback Symposium (November 2021)

Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE) International Research Conference (December 2021)

QAA Membership podcast: Making the language of assessment inclusive

In this two-part podcast, we talk about the QAA Collaborative Enhancement Project ' Making the language of assessment inclusive'. The project is led by the University of West of the England, in partnership with University of Brighton, University of Greenwich, and University of Hertfordshire.

Project lead:

University of the West of England

Project partners:

University of Hertfordshire, University of Brighton and University of Greenwich

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Making the Language of Assessment Inclusive

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University of the West of England’s Collaborative Enhancement Project poses a critical enquiry into what is termed the ‘mysterious quotients’ of commonly used undergraduate assessment terms and phrases.

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Ungrading and Alternative Assessment: a Workshop

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University of Nottingham Dealing with exam stress and anxiety

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University of Nottingham Dealing with exam stress and anxiety

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Project: Essay, portfolio or report...?

Assessment at Kent is categorised under four headlines for data management purposes: Exam, In-Course Test, Coursework and Project. As a category, the term is appropriate. However, the term 'Project' as a form of assessment type to be communicated to students is unclear.

A 'project' assessment type is usually a form of in-depth study used at Levels 6 or 7 to assess a student's research ability, detailed knowledge, and understanding of a particular topic, task or activity. As such, a 'project' may incorporate a number of distinct assessed elements and formats may vary widely. The term 'project' when applied to assessment within a module is imprecise, leaving the exact form of assessment unclear.

When designing an assessment which may fall under the headline of 'project', determine the actual assessment format and the individual elements to be assessed and label them appropriately in the interest of transparency and clarity of information for students.

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<<back to assessment and feedback design

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Assessment Profile - Teaching - University of Kent

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Assessment at Kent is categorised under four headlines for data management purposes: Exam, In-Course Test, Coursework and Project. As a category, the term is appropriate. However, the term ‘Project’ as a form of assessment type to be communicated to students is unclear.

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McConlogue 2020: A Guide for Teachers, Assessment and Feedback

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McConlogue 2020: A Guide for Teachers, Assessment and Feedback

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AdvanceHE: Impacts on HE Assessment and Feedback

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AdvanceHE: Impacts on HE Assessment and Feedback

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© 2022 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer. Privacy Statement

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University of Hull: Rethinking Assessment

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University of Hull: Rethinking Assessment

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Rethinking Assessment - Inclusive Practice in Higher Education

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After universities quickly moved to redesign their 2020 assessments, many of us were left wondering what the future of HE assessment might look like.

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Leeds University: Principles of Online Inclusive Assessment

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Leeds University: Principles of Online Inclusive Assessment

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Principles of Inclusive Online Assessment - Inclusive Teaching

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To ensure our assessments are accessible & inclusive for our diverse student population, the University has agreed 10 principles for online assessment.

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Several UNSW bodies (primarily SEADU, The Learning Centre and Nura Gili) can help academic staff achieve inclusivity in learning and teaching throughout the university. These bodies can advise staff both generally and on strategies for assessment, to ensure that all students are able to fulfil their academic potential.

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Plymouth: 7 Steps to Inclusive Assessment 

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Plymouth: 7 Steps to Inclusive Assessment 

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Taking needs assessments online - Responding to Coronavirus

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With the impact of lockdown meaning face-to-face needs assessments with disabled students are not possible, some centres are considering moving their services online. Three practitioners experienced in providing a remote needs assessment service share what they’ve learned.

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University of Plymouth: Inclusive Assessment, Diversity and Inclusion Challenge

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University of Plymouth: Inclusive Assessment, Diversity and Inclusion Challenge

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T&L Forum Online Alternative Assessments  

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T&L Forum Online Alternative Assessments  