- “Pass-fail grading may reduce stress and increase group cohesion in medical students compared with traditional 5-interval grading.” (p.1443)
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“We examined how achievement (learning and performance) goals and academic self-efficacy predicted three achievement-related outcomes in a … college sample. Self-efficacy tended to moderate the effects of (learning and performance) goals on number of courses taken for a letter grade as well as achievement in letter graded and pass/fail courses. Thus, learning goals better predicted choosing letter grades when self-efficacy was high than when it was low. In contrast, performance goals better predicted choosing letter grades when self-efficacy was low than when it was high. Through their prediction of the choice to receive letter grades, these interactions predicted achievement in pass/fail courses.” (p.495)
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“Self-reflection and peer review are empowering forms of assessment that require engagement and involvement, and students are often best …placed to provide feedback on each other’s technical and interpersonal performance…Self-reflection and peer review also help students prepare for their post-graduation work environments and duties, which has positive implications for the development of future mentors and assessors.” (p.27)
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The present study is designed to improve understanding of personal and situational effects on academic performance. This study examines the … relationship between flexible assessment system and academic performance mediated by self-regulation and academic motivation. This study also investigates moderated gender as a variable on the relationship models…The results indicate that academic motivational construct is a strong predictor of students’ self-regulation in learning and academic performance. Self-regulation mediates relationship between students’ academic motivation and students’ academic performance. Academic motivation and self-regulation also mediate the relationship between flexible assessment system and self regulation. The results also indicate that flexible assessment system does not have a direct relation with performance. These results are discussed with regard to the relevance of flexible assessment system, academic motivation, and self-regulation in increasing academic performance” (p.153) “The results of this study indicated that there is no difference between men and women in the relationship model proposed in this study. This means that students’ academic motivation, self-regulation, academic performance, and perception of flexible assessment system between male and female are not different. The results of this study also indicated that there was no statistically significant mean difference among academic motivation, self-regulated learning, academic performance, and perception of flexible assessment system with respect to gender. The results of this study provide empirical support for the theoretical relationship between cognitive evaluation theories and self-regulated learning strategies in the context of the classroom” (p.172)
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“From the analysis presented it appears that using a flexible assessment approach has been well received and appreciated by students. It allows … students some power of choice and thus a feeling of being more in control of their own learning approach. It has not increased the amount of administrative work…It appears that students who have worked steadily throughout the semester, and have sat the mid-semester exam, and worked on all the five CML quizzes, are rewarded with the better results. The practice and feedback obtained through the CML quiz component appears to contribute strongly to students’ quality of learning. An important effect of the flexible assessment system has been the observed change in approach and attitude of the students. The reduction of some student stress levels, and students being more responsible for their method of learning, must be counted as positive outcomes.”(p.548-549) “…Students will learn better with continuous exposure and practice (allowing for reinforcement, feedback, self-assessment and a deeper approach) rather than heavy cramming at the end of a course which encourages a surface approaching and feelings of panic from ‘too much to learn’.” (p.546)
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“We find that allowing students to finalize their allocations late in the term significantly and positively impacts motivation, grades and attitudes.…The results suggest that self-regulated learning skills may be enhanced if students have an opportunity to make more informed choices. This enables them to develop a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses by reconsidering their initial beliefs, their actual results and the reasons for the differences.” (p.148)
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“This indicates that there is strong appetite among students for personalising their assessment scheme, but a sizable portion would prefer to use … the values proposed by the instructor…Having too many options may cause ‘choice overload’ and produce negative effects, including reduced motivation to choose and/or less satisfaction with the option selected (Scheibehenne, Greifeneder, and Todd 2010). However, this approach to flexible assessment (in which a proposed ‘default’ grade distribution is provided, as well as the option to modify it, if desired), appears to have met the needs and preferences of diverse learners in these large undergraduate classes…Among the subset of students (36%) who completed mid-course evaluation surveys, the large majority (79%) was glad they could change the proposed grade distribution and very few (<4%) did not appreciate the option.” (p.76)
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“Initial findings suggest that those students who chose a flexible weighting option not only experienced less stress and anxiety, but improved their … outcomes as the majority of students who chose the flexible weighting option also achieved a better grade (a range of 0.2% – 6.% higher) than they would have if they had followed the default weighting scheme.” (p.2)
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“Students had multiple opportunities to grow as reflective practitioners as they critically looked back on who they were at the beginning of their…Master’s Program and how they had evolved as teachers and learners at the conclusion of their Program…Students developed a heightened level of confidence and competence that motivated them to be leaders and agents of change in their school, communities, and beyond.” (p.320)
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“Self-reflection and peer review are empowering forms of assessment that require engagement and involvement, and students are often best …placed to provide feedback on each other’s technical and interpersonal performance…Self-reflection and peer review also help students prepare for their post-graduation work environments and duties, which has positive implications for the development of future mentors and assessors.” (p.27)