Student‐based Assessment in a Multi‐disciplinary Problem‐based Learning Environment

Abstract Engineering education in Australia must respond to a changing environment so that the nation continues to produce engineering graduates able to contribute towards the development of society in the face of local, national and international pressures. To address these changes, engineering schools are introducing teaching initiatives aimed at developing a range of skills including people, problem‐solving and self‐directed learning skills. Many of these programs encourage student learning through active participation with the subject matter; however, they also place a considerable burden upon staff because of the assessment load required to ensure that students attain the required competencies. Student‐based assessment strategies are often proposed as techniques for enhancing student learning by transferring the ownership and some of the responsibility for the assessment process to the student body. This paper examines the literature relating to student‐based assessment and presents some assessment strategies suitable for a problem‐based learning course in embedded systems design.