Reimagining Assessment Practicum

By participating in this program, participants will:

• Explore grading practices that center learning and growth for all students
• Recognize the difference between learning assessment and grading
• Identify teaching strategies that reduce barriers to learning
• Understand multiple methods for generating timely feedback about student learning progress
• Select interventions that are meaningful for students and manageable for instructors

Keynote Address | Grading for Growth: Toward More Humane, Authentic, and Trustworthy Ways to Evaluate Student Work by Robert Talbert

• Grading as we know it is significantly broken. The traditional approach involving one-and-done assessment, points, partial credit, and averaging is demotivating for students, demoralizing for faculty, time-consuming, disconnected from science, and of questionable statistical validity. But it is changeable, and in fact there is no better time than now to explore alternatives that prioritize student growth and align better with how humans learn. In this talk, Talbert explores the history and issues of traditional grading, proposes a framework for "alternative" grading practices, and sees how to implement alternative grading without massive requirements of time or energy.

• This recorded session investigates one of the biggest barriers to equitable assessment: grades. What can instructors do to mitigate the potential problems of grading and better align their assessment practices to the course goals so that all students can thrive? This session explores how grades can demotivate learning and introduces a range of alternative grading frameworks and strategies that can create more equitable outcomes for all students. By highlighting and experimenting with different grading practices, participants will leave with a menu of options they can employ at any scale, within a range of constraints, and in any combination to increase students’ intrinsic motivation to learn and to reduce potential grading bias that can unwittingly perpetuate systemic barriers. Plus, when grading practices are better aligned with the purpose of a course, instructors get the added benefit of spending far less time and stress on grading.

Session 2 | What types of feedback can we use to assess and promote learning?

• How do we take whatever grading scheme we have and take it to the next level through giving high-quality, actionable feedback on student work? This recorded session explores the role that feedback plays in systems of assessment. We invite participants to individually reflect on how feedback fits into their current assessment practices, while also presenting a variety of approaches for utilizing feedback in ways that can foster more equitable assessment. We  examine feedback as an opportunity to engage with students more equitably through a continuum of learning, presenting feedback as a strategic triangle of approaches comprising peer-feedback, instructor feedback (both from instructor to student and student to instructor), and students’ own metacognitive self-feedback. 

Session 3 | Co-Created Rubrics: Prioritizing Transparency, Equity, and Relevance in Course Assessment

• How do we ensure clarity, equity, and relevance in course assessments? How can educators and students collaboratively craft rubrics that don’t just serve as a scoring guide but promote clearer, more inclusive assessment methods that align with course learning outcomes and students’ diverse learning experiences? While rubrics are an integral part of assessment toolkits, the challenge lies in making them transparent, inclusive, and in alignment with our course learning outcomes. In this recorded session, we delve deeply into the significance of course rubrics for equitable assessment. We will shed light on the limitations of traditional rubrics, which often fail to represent the myriad voices of students and introduce rubric co-creation as an equitable approach. Participants will engage in rubric analysis and design techniques that will minimize ambiguity in the assessment process and maximize the academic success of all students.

Session 4 | Generative AI and Transparent Design in Research Assignments

• Research from Project Information Literacy (PIL) and Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) Higher Ed provide insights into what promotes student success on research assignments. This workshop introduces these research findings, then proceeds to activities that provide workshop participants the opportunity to apply the “Purpose, Tasks, Criteria” assignment review framework developed by TILT Higher Ed. Starting with analysis of activities designed for use in library instruction sessions, interacting with current generative AI (GAI) tools, the workshop also analyzes examples of research assignments developed by faculty, how those are communicated to students, and how research assignments might be modified or changed in light of new technologies.

Session 5 | Optimizing Canvas for Grading and Feedback

• This recorded session is a comprehensive workshop designed to empower Northwestern instructors in using Canvas effectively for grading and providing constructive feedback. In this interactive session, advanced Canvas features will be reviewed with a focus on innovative grading methods such as contract grading, ungrading methods, and labor-based grading to enhance the overall experience of the learning management system. The skills shared in this session will optimize your grading practices and make the most of Canvas's powerful features in ways that save time but also benefit student learning

Learning Lab | Create an Accessible Canvas Site in 7 Easy Steps

• Making a Canvas page accessible is often, mistakenly, viewed as a difficult task. This recording covers seven simple things to do to their Canvas course site to remove barriers for all learners. It introduce the Pope Tech Dashboard and Accessibility Guide, tools to help easily identify and fix accessibility issues in Canvas. 

Colleague Panel | Why and how does equity matter in assessment?

• Why should we consider redesigning assessments? How should equity be honored in the process? How could we create more equitable classrooms by redesigning assessments? This recorded panel discusses the integration of equity into student-centered assessments in multiple Northwestern contexts. The panelists showcase how equitable assessment practices can meet your learning goals and preserve rigor in your courses, while also supporting your students’ learning needs.

Student Panel on Socio-Emotional Wellness

• This recorded panel turns to students who have either directly experienced ungrading and other alternative assessment practices in facilitator Meaghan Fritz’s courses or who have worked closely with Fritz and her colleague, Lisa Del Torto, in interviewing former students as part of their longitudinal research study. In a Q&A format, students respond specifically to questions regarding more holistic aspects of learning, focusing on areas of mental health, anxiety, and stress as it pertains to their experiences with assessment. Students discuss their learning motivation in ungraded courses, the rigor of those learning experiences, and how alternative assessment practices impacted their educational experience broadly.

Northwestern's University Practicum on Reimagining Assessment is recommended for instructors, graduate students and postdocs preparing for future instructor roles, and staff—such as program coordinators—whose work shapes course content and delivery.

All levels, backgrounds, and teaching contexts are welcome.