Quality and assessment

Assessment is used for purposes of accountability and the improvement of teaching and learning. In addition, stakeholders such as employers and government funding councils rely on assessment to provide them with data ensuring quality of provision and standards of education. Illustrates how these seemingly conflicting demands can be met with reference to three empirical sources: interviews with staff at the University of Central Lancashire, England; and fieldwork conducted at James Madison University (JMU), Virginia, and Alverno College, Milwaukee, USA. Makes a case for assessment which is integrated into the learning experience, responsive to student needs, and which is congruent with the aims of individual programmes and the mission statement of the institution.