Assessment for Learning in face-to-face and in emergency virtual teaching at university: satisfaction and frustration of students’ Basic Psychological Needs

Abstract

The satisfaction and frustration of basic psychological needs (BPN) in Assessment for Learning (AfL)-based interventions in the context of Physical Education Teacher Education is a research area that has not received much attention. This study measures students’ BPN in two consecutive cohorts (face-to-face and emergency virtual teaching) during a module at university that uses AfL in an autonomy supportive learning environment. The Satisfaction and Frustration of the Basic Psychological Needs Scale for Training was administered to fourth year students. Qualitative open-ended questions were incorporated into the questionnaire to deepen on students’ opinions on the experience. The results showed high levels of BPN satisfaction plus low levels of frustration in both face-to-face and virtual teaching. Likewise, students confirmed the importance of autonomy, structure and feedback in virtual classes, which supports the idea that autonomy and structure are complementary and not contradictory. It also shows how technologies in virtual teaching generated commitment and learning, favoring continual feedback on tutored work. Although this study contributes to scaling up the empirical evidence of the effects of AfL on motivation, a lot of terrain remains to be explored on its implementation in university contexts that support BPN.