Beverley Oliver

eVALUate: An Evaluation Instrument for Measuring Students' Perceptions of Their Engagement and Learning Outcomes.

In the current climate in Australian higher education, quality assurance in university teaching is a priority. In particular, the introduction of the Learning and Teaching Performance Fund (LTPF) has refocused attention on universities’ internal student evaluation survey instruments. This paper reports the development, validation and implementation of a new unit survey instrument which prompts students to reflect on what helps their achievement of unit learning outcomes, and to report their levels of motivation, engagement and overall satisfaction with a semester‐long course or unit of study. The instrument (eVALUate) was created from precepts reported in the research literature, current practices in evaluating teaching, and sound quality assurance practices appropriate to a university outcomes‐focused education paradigm.

Validating a teaching survey which drives increased response rates in a unit survey

At Curtin University, student perceptions of teaching and learning are gathered and reported online through eVALUate, a system that includes separate unit and teaching surveys. This article reports the development and validation of one of those surveys, the eVALUate teaching survey, which was developed based on the research literature on excellent teaching and evaluation. Since its development in 2006, repeated statistical testing using progressively larger samples has shown that the survey is valid and reliable. Moreover, the way in which the teaching survey is deployed within eVALUate, appended to the unit survey, which provides crucial institutional data, has significantly increased university response rates. This validated instrument is used for self-reflection, professional development, and rewarding staff.

Want students to engage? Contextualise graduate learning outcomes and assess for employability

ABSTRACT The ability of graduates to proactively develop, adapt and repackage their capabilities (or attributes) is an essential aspect of employability. This study was conducted at Deakin University, where graduate capabilities have been recast as graduate learning outcomes, and employability is frequently referenced. In light of significant curriculum reform to make graduate capabilities prominent, we investigated student perceptions of graduate capabilities and associated learning outcomes, as well as preparation for employment, to better understand how we can engage students in developing and showcasing their employability. We interviewed 45 students across 10 focus groups and qualitatively analysed their responses for commonly recurring themes. Focus groups were completed in two stages with data analysis and adjustment of questions between stages to enable validation and greater depth of understanding. Our analysis suggests that even with capabilities renamed as learning outcomes, students find graduate learning outcomes too generic to be meaningful and are most likely to engage with learning outcomes that are contextualised and assessed. Our case study illustrates ways to combat this – particularly the importance of assessment design and consistent, student-focused communication in engaging students in the development of capabilities and in the curation of evidence for employability. Students also suggest that advice from employers, professionals and recent graduates, and exposure to industry-related experiences could help make graduate capabilities more meaningful.

Graduate Attributes for 2020 and Beyond: Recommendations for Australian Higher Education Providers.

ABSTRACT Given global uncertainty related to rapid technological developments and the world of work, alongside other equally (if not more) concerning social and political disruptions – the assurance of graduate attributes of importance to employability and citizenship are arguably more important than ever. In this paper, we investigate three areas of practice by Australian universities, and non-university higher education providers who have been omitted from past analyses of this kind. First, we examine the graduate attributes most frequently published by institutions and discipline groups and whether emphasis has changed over time. Second, we investigate how graduate attributes are assured, including a scan of the inputs put in practice by higher education providers, and comparison of graduate and employer perceptions of achievement gathered through recent national surveys. Third, we connect our findings in the first two areas and make recommendations for the attributes needed to equip 2020+ graduates for citizenship and employability. Based on these analyses, we recommend that all providers, university and non-university, and the discipline groups within them: make graduate attributes more visible to the public and especially to students; continue embedding them in the assessed curricula, but also ensure that assessment is explicit and that attributes are communicated and explained repeatedly throughout the course; continue to use stakeholder perception measures, but more consistently align skills in data collection instruments to allow a more constructive comparison, and also draw on more objective measures such as actual assessment of achievement; continue to emphasise attributes associated with global citizenship, teamwork and communication; give more emphasis to independence, critical thinking and problem-solving, and the fundamental foundational skills of written and spoken communication. Most importantly, continue to revise the attributes regularly to ensure fitness for purpose in the rapidly changing environment within which we and our graduates operate.