The AssessWell Plate: Creating A Modern, Balanced Assessment Diet for Students and Staff

Abstract

Higher education teachers often find it difficult to assess students, as many are not often trained in assessment design. This leads to a reliance on types of assessment they experienced in their own education, which are not necessarily the most effective types to encourage and measure learning.

This poster presents a transformative framework for assessment design in higher education, inspired by the familiar “EatWell Plate” concept (a graphical representation of a balanced diet shown as occupied space on a plate by certain food groups). Recognizing the limitations of traditional assessment methods such as exams, essay writing, and presentations, which we liken to unhealthy fats, protein, and dairy respectively, our simplistic yet intuitive framework encourages instructors to move towards a range of artefacts that are more authentic to post-graduation challenges, symbolised as fruit and vegetables, and practical assessments, depicted as carbohydrates.

This innovative approach aims to cultivate a more holistic assessment diet for students and to foster deeper and more authentic learning experiences. We call for the promotion of a positive assessment culture, such as through demystifying the hidden curriculum and the provision of regular, timely, and useful feedback.

This comprehensive approach offers a forward-thinking framework that prioritizes student engagement, skill development, and meaningful learning outcomes. By emphasizing what assessment practices could be rather than what they currently are, the AssessWell Plate challenges existing norms, encouraging instructors to reimagine their assessment design approaches. Through its focus on authenticity, diversity, and inclusivity, this framework extends current knowledge and practices of more effective and equitable assessment strategies in higher education.