Assessment as learning to learn paradigm: an innovative approach for teaching and learning

Abstract

In higher education, assessment practices are often focused on students demonstrating current knowledge, and generating materials for grading, with little emphasis placed on equipping students to learn how to learn. Consequently, we are failing to prepare them for the rest of their lives. One important aim of education should be to equip learners with the ability to learn how to learn so that they will be able to handle their own learning and future challenges. Assessment in the learning to learn paradigm places special emphasis on the role of the learner and highlights the use of assessment to increase learners' ability to control their own learning. Subsequently, this form of assessment treats learning as a process rather than merely finding out how successful the learners are at the end of the learning process. Even though students are put in the spotlight of learning in this assessment paradigm, teachers play a key role in facilitating students to learn how to learn. Teaching plans will subsequently be designed to allow opportunities for students to self-assess and peer-assess, which can be used optionally with teacher-led assessment. This paper will first present the concepts of assessment as learning to learn paradigm. It will then report on an investigation of a teaching and learning approach embedded with the assessment as learning to learn concepts. The investigation collected data from students studying on a BEd module including their self and peer assessment as well as the assessment conducted by their module tutor.