Publication: Assessing English Language student-teachers’ contributions to online discussion forums: Is self-evaluation report writing the answer?
Date
2009
Authors
Towndrow, Phillip A. (Phillip Alexander)
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Publisher
Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
(MERLOT), California State University
Abstract
This paper presents the outcomes of the author’s explorations into the use of self-evaluation report writing as a means of assessing student-teachers’ contributions to online discussion forums. As part of the requirements for a Bachelor’s degree in education, two groups of student-teachers, one in 2006 and the other in 2007, took an elective module where partial credit was given for writing two self-evaluation reports (one formative, one summative) based on their online learning experiences. The evidence presented shows the pragmatic and pedagogic benefits of self-assessment especially in terms of allowing student-teachers the time and space to describe their work in detail, reflect on its significance and devise future plans of action both within and beyond the course of study. The paper also draws attention to the potentially negative aspects in self-assessment of making oneself identifiable and knowable. In conclusion, the paper notes that teachers and students require a prior understanding of the ideological, moral and theoretical underpinnings of self-assessment practices if they are to be used productively in the search for pedagogic solutions to issues surrounding the design, implementation and assessment of challenging, open-ended tasks in online learning environments.
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Citation
Towndrow, P. A. (2009). Assessing English Language student-teachers’ contributions to online discussion forums: Is self-evaluation report writing the answer? MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 5(4), 661-674. http://jolt.merlot.org/vol5no4/towndrow_1209.pdf