Assessment as Learning and Empowerment: Towards Sustainable Learning in Higher Education

Abstract

This chapter introduces the concept of assessment as learning and empowerment. This approach is based on three fundamental challenges: (a) student participation in the assessment of their own learning; (b) feedforward, which focuses on the delivery of information about the results of assessment that can be used in a proactive way; and (c) producing high quality assessment tasks. These three challenges can be subdivided into ten separate principles that, when operationalized by university tutors, enable them to introduce innovative practice or procedures that influence the way both staff and students experience assessment. Through the use of appropriate technology, innovative proposals based on the three challenges mentioned above can be implemented such that they empower the learning process for students within the academic context. At the same time, this technology and consequent empowerment can help students develop the skills and competencies which lead to strategic learning in extra-academic (personal and professional) contexts as well.