Synoptic Learning and Assessment: An Experience Report

1. Synoptic Learning and Assessment: An Experience Report Phyo Kyaw phyo.kyaw@dur.ac.uk

2. Synoptic Assessments

3. Outcomes • Students were more confident on applying the concepts and methods of one subject area to others • 70% of 60 students • Students gained a wider perspective of how they view different subject areas • Students had the opportunity to work with a scenario similar to real-life projects. • Increased staff workload • Increased students’ workload • Summative vs. formative assessments

4. Improvements for Year two • Need to introduce synoptic learning as well as assessment:- “Synoptic Learning and assessment” • Mapping Synoptic Assessment modules • Assignment wording • Timetable of the modules and assessments • Assignment Integration

5. General guidelines • Synoptic learning and assessment rather than synoptic assessment • Synoptic assessment should only be applied when it clearly benefits students’ learning • Staff collaboration • Apply Synoptic assessment to modules at introductory levels • Careful planning

6. Achieving synoptic assessment • How to adapt the existing assessment structure? • Top-down • The curriculum can be tailored towards SA • Bottom-up • An opportunistic and informal, where assessments of different modules can be integrated depending on the nature of the subject area and resources available. • Level of integration • The rules for synoptic assessment • Types of assessment • External or internal

7. Background • Synoptic Assessment – Pulls together independent assessments from a number of modules into a single assessment. • Initially to address the:- • “lack of coherence in a student’s understanding of a subject or the connections between elements of the subject.” (Dearing 1996) • Patrick has identified:- • “range or breath”, “applying knowledge and understanding”, “use ideas and skills” (Patrick 2005) • Applied broadly in GCSE and A-Level • Essay, research or enquiry, case studies or experimental work • Not so much in Higher Education

8. Aims • To promote active learning by allowing students to learn that a solution for the problem statement for one assessment requires the knowledge and experience of the subject areas from different modules • To reduce the overall students’ workload by combining one or more assessment exercises • To make assessments more significant and broaden the students’ understanding • To promote staff collaboration and integration across subject areas.

9. Conclusion • Based on findings • A set of generic guidelines were produced • More evaluation is needed Future plans • Measurements on Students’ attainment • Top-down approach • More quantitative results • Construct explicit guidance on the objectives of subject specific content. • Skills, concepts, methods, applications and themes