Time limited
Oral exam on written response
Students are randomly assigned 2 questions from a bank of questions that cover most of the course material. They are then asked to write their answers on the blank paper provided. Students are observed whilst writing. Each student is then questioned for 15 minutes, and this oral component is video recorded. They are first questioned about their written responses and must defend their answers (staff highlight any mistakes or gaps in their responses). They are then asked further questions about other aspects of the course.
Sequence
Online Facebook participation
Throughout the semester students are asked to participate in online discussions of the course content. This task works really well for topics that have a visual component but could be used in other courses.
Sequence
Padlet Digital Reflections
Every week of semester students are required to use Padlet to write a reflection using concepts and theories from the week's lecture, readings, and from other resources such as academic and media articles, open blogs, images, video and social media.
Sequence
Adaptations to keep student engagement alive in Zoom
One of my elective law courses, Asian Legal Systems, presented a challenge. As well as enabling students understand how law and legal institutions in Asia operate in different and distinctive ways, the design of this comparative law course was to facilitate discussion and the sharing of perspectives thus maximising student input. Keeping these dynamics alive in Zoom classes led to several modifications in assessment.
Assessment method
VIVA Vocce Examination to Test Clinical Reasoning
In order to assess student preparedness for the transition to the clinical-phase of the BVSc, students are assessed by a VIVA Vocce examination at the end of their 3rd year. The VIVA examination is a one-hour examination split between a written and oral component. Exam content is highly integrated and assesses content taught from each of the five 3rd year BVSc courses taught. Students are assessed against a standard rubric for their ability to identify problems, pathologic processes that may explain these problems, diagnostics, diagnoses, therapeutics, as well as professional communication.
Team or Group based
Presentation of Basic Mixed Methods (Quantitative and Qualitative) Research
In this assessment students are asked to collect and analyse some basic qualitative and quantitative data from a site of their choosing, and then present their findings. Students are asked to choose a site to collect their data (examples of sites can be provided but they can also be given freedom to choose one that is not listed in the examples). They are then asked to design a research question, collect some basic quantitative data and qualitative data that relates to the themes of the course, conduct some basic analysis (in the case of quantitative typically just some frequencies), link their findings to existing academic literature, and present their findings in their tutorial.
Assessment method
Media Inspired Essay
In this assessment students choose a piece of contemporary media and discuss the issues it raises using academic literature. Students are given some restrictions on the media they can choose such as what topic the chosen media should discuss, what forms of media they can choose from, or when the media was released. Students select a media item and read it in order to identify an issue, or several related issues, which relate to the themes of the course. Using the issue/s as a foundation they write their own research question and answer it using the academic literature.
Time limited
Written Formulation and Case Management in Mental Health
In this summative e-delivered assessment students develop a case formulation in which they synthesise key aspects of a written vignette to provide a cohesive narrative of the reasons for the clinical presentation and vulnerability and strengths of the individual described in the vignette, adhering to strict character limits.
Team or Group based, Sequence, Time limited
Stakeholder Urban Policies Role-Play Exercise
In this role-play students learn to position themselves in the roles of different stakeholders, develop strategies for negotiation and decision-making and need to be able to identify interests, goals and power hold by each stakeholder.
Team or Group based
Making Policy Decision as a Central Banker
In this assessment, students play the role of a central banker. They are required to identify and use appropriate data and information to analyse the state of the Australian economy, decide the next appropriate monetary policy action, and to communicate their decision and rationales in the format of a policy statement similar to the Reserve Bank of Australia's monetary policy media release/statement.