Abstract

How can candidates’ knowledge, skills and understanding be assessed when their evidence is ephemeral? For instance how can oral communication and interpersonal skills be assessed? What are the alternatives to written examinations? How valid and reliable are these alternatives? Dr Jackie Greatorex will explore these questions using a small number of cases. This session will be particularly useful for people involved in the development of syllabus and designing of assessments for which evidence is ephemeral or written examinations do not seem appropriate. Some familiarity with assessment is assumed.

Speaker biography

Jackie joined Cambridge Assessment in 1997 as a researcher and in 2005 she was appointed to her current position as Principal Research Officer, Educational and Psychological Studies, in Assessment Research and Development Division at Cambridge Assessment. She leads research on general and vocational qualifications and sits on the editorial board of Research Matters: a Cambridge Assessment publication. Her publications include works on cognitive strategies, research methods, teaching strategies, developing and applying descriptors and comparability. Jackie’s conference papers address grading and pedagogical practices among other issues. Previously, Jackie worked at the University of Derby researching education and professional development. She has a PhD, a Master of Arts from Cambridge University, a Masters in Educational Assessment and a BSc (Hons) in Combined Studies (Psychology and Mathematics).