Read a review of our Masterclass in Inclusive Assessment

28 August 2023

In this post, Dr Shane McIver, CRADLE Fellowship Holder and Inclusive Education Lecturer reviews our Masterclass in Inclusive Assessment. This CRADLE and DLF collaborative event was presented by Juanita Custance, Associate Professor Alexander Mussap, and Dr Mollie Dollinger. It was co-hosted by Dr Joanna Tai and Dr Shane McIver. The Masterclass explored assessment design ideas and inspiration to integrate inclusive education into students’ learning experience.

What did the masterclass involve?

The way we handle assessments can be a huge contributing factor to students’ disengagement. Particularly when the tasks are unclear, students aren’t sure what the unit chair wants, or being unsure of their own capabilities and where to find support. The aim of the Masterclass was to show people how some of the theory behind inclusive education can translate into practical application that could provide greater benefits for students and staff.

We had four key presenters at the event:

Dr Joanna Tai, Senior Research Fellow from CRADLE, who recently co-authored CRADLE’s Assessment for Inclusion book.

Juanita Custance, a Language and Learning Adviser, who has extensive knowledge of the student experience around assessment and rubrics.

Associate Professor Alexander Mussap from the School of Psychology, who paints outside the lines when it comes to his approach to quizzes and exams with some fantastic results.

Dr Mollie Dollinger, Senior Lecturer in Learning Design at DLF, and researchs student equity and inclusion, student voice, and graduate employability, with CRADLE

With over 300 registrations we could see just how important the issue of inclusivity is not only to the higher education sector, but also to individual teaching staff.

What did you learn from the masterclass?

I ran an activity at the end of the session using the ‘Wow Now Ciao’ model, where you note the piece of information that impacted you the most (wow), the thing that you are going to start doing after the session (now) and the thing in your practice that you are going to rethink and stop doing (ciao).

It was interesting how everyone embraced those three elements. People were very willing to examine and revisit what they were currently doing. People were talking about creating more inclusive design within their assessment tasks and engaging with students in more productive ways to get feedback about how to move forward. They were rethinking a whole bunch of things, like not using the rubrics just like a checklist, making sure assessment isn’t set in concrete where the same approach is rolled out each and every year.

It led to quite radical rethinking and revisiting of what people were doing, with participants signalling they were taking on board new ways of designing assessment. I thought that was really exciting!  

Learn more about inclusive assessment

Deakin Learning Futures and ANU are co-hosting a new event as part of their Change One Thing series of events discussing ways teaching staff can make their unit sites more accessible.

You can also find a wealth of resources on the Inclusive Education webpage.

Additionally CRADLE’s latest book, Assessment for Inclusion in Higher Education, brings together national and international authors to examine how diversity and inclusion impact assessment in higher education. The book provides educators with the knowledge and understanding required to transform practices so that they are more equitable and inclusive of diverse learners.

About Shane McIver

I am an import from the School of Health and Social Development. Having focused on implementation and evaluation, I’ve also been working towards building inclusive education into my teaching. This work translates well into my new role embedding inclusive education across Deakin University. The role is all about promoting a no-student-left-behind model around teaching and learning, making sure we’re being equitable across the board.

We find there are specific cohorts that are struggling more than others, such as those who can relate to experiencing low-socioeconomic status (SES), students in rural or remote areas, Indigenous students and also those with disabilities. There are people who tend to slip through the cracks and disengage. We’re looking at ways to build retention and success, and also empower students along the way.

With thanks to Deakin’s T&L Nexus for sharing their talk with Dr Shane McIver

Upcoming Events

Don’t forget, CRADLE Seminar Series 2023 #9: Developing learners feedback literacy in and for the workplace with Dr Christy Noble will be held on Tuesday 12 September at 2pm. Be part of the event by registering now.