Phyo Kyaw

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Synoptic Learning and Assessment An Experience
Report

• Phyo Kyaw
• phyo.kyaw_at_dur.ac.uk

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Synoptic Assessments
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Outcomes

• Students were more confident on applying the
  concepts and methods of one subject area to
  others
• 70 of 60 students
• Students gained a wider perspective of how they
  view different subject areas
• Students had the opportunity to work with a
  scenario similar to real-life projects.
• Increased staff workload
• Increased students workload
• Summative vs. formative assessments

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Improvements for Year two

• Need to introduce synoptic learning as well as
  assessment-
• Synoptic Learning and assessment
• Mapping Synoptic Assessment modules
• Assignment wording
• Timetable of the modules and assessments
• Assignment Integration

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General guidelines

• Synoptic learning and assessment rather than
  synoptic assessment
• Synoptic assessment should only be applied when
  it clearly benefits students learning
• Staff collaboration
• Apply Synoptic assessment to modules at
  introductory levels
• Careful planning

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Achieving synoptic assessment

• How to adapt the existing assessment structure?
• Top-down
• The curriculum can be tailored towards SA
• Bottom-up
• An opportunistic and informal, where assessments
  of different modules can be integrated depending
  on the nature of the subject area and resources
  available.
• Level of integration
• The rules for synoptic assessment
• Types of assessment
• External or internal

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Background

• Synoptic Assessment Pulls together independent
  assessments from a number of modules into a
  single assessment.
• Initially to address the-
• lack of coherence in a students understanding
  of a subject or the connections between elements
  of the subject. (Dearing 1996)
• Patrick has identified-
• range or breath, applying knowledge and
  understanding, use ideas and skills (Patrick
  2005)
• Applied broadly in GCSE and A-Level
• Essay, research or enquiry, case studies or
  experimental work
• Not so much in Higher Education

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Aims

• To promote active learning by allowing students
  to learn that a solution for the problem
  statement for one assessment requires the
  knowledge and experience of the subject areas
  from different modules
• To reduce the overall students workload by
  combining one or more assessment exercises
• To make assessments more significant and broaden
  the students understanding
• To promote staff collaboration and integration
  across subject areas.

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Conclusion

• Based on findings
• A set of generic guidelines were produced
• More evaluation is needed
• Future plans
• Measurements on Students attainment
• Top-down approach
• More quantitative results
• Construct explicit guidance on the objectives of
  subject specific content.
• Skills, concepts, methods, applications and
  themes