Intermediate assessment in higher education

Abstract

Assessment is an integral part of Higher Education. In addition to final exams, students are often presented with different types of assessment during the semester, which is called intermediate or continuous assessment. Previous research indicated that intermediate assessment is beneficial for student results, but there is no evidence whether specific assessment characteristics may be more beneficial than others. The studies in the current thesis investigate the effects of specific assessment characteristics on grades, and the perceptions about intermediate assessment of teachers and students in first-year undergraduate law, criminology, and psychology courses. From the literature review it could be concluded that intermediate assessment is mostly beneficial to grades, independent specific assessment characteristics. The interview studies show that teachers and students have positive perceptions of intermediate assessment, but teachers value the assess different knowledge or skills and students want intermediate assessments related to the final exam. Furthermore, teachers’ main goal for intermediate assessment is supporting student learning. A questionnaire study with first-year law and criminology studies shows that intermediate assessment can improve the lagging results of male students. In general it can be concluded that using intermediate assessment is effective, regardless of characteristics and that assessment practices of teachers should be supported.