Page 12 - ADU Smart Learning Center Issue 1

12

ADU

Assessment Strategy

in practice. It involves students and groups assessing real-world industry challenges and seeking to solve these
challenges as part of their course assessment. While this example is specific to business programs, there are
many examples of experiential learning and problem-solving within our other colleges here at ADU as well.
A key goal of the ADU assessment strategy is to gather all these examples and present them in a handbook
which will be distributed to all faculty as a reference and guide. I believe that this will encourage innovation in
teaching and learning as well as assessment.

In what ways does the assessment strategy cater to the
diverse learning needs and styles of ADU students while
promoting continuous improvement in teaching methods
and curriculum development?

Abu Dhabi university students come from a variety of different
high school systems across the UAE. This diversity is further
complicated by cultural differences and the fact that many of
our students’ second language is English. One of the first tasks
in the development of our assessment strategy has been to
ensure that the assessments we provide to our students are
clearly written to ensure that’s students understand exactly
what they need to do to be successful. To achieve this goal, we
have developed a pre-assessment moderation process where
assessments and the rubrics used to grade them are reviewed
in advance of implementation based on a fit for purpose
checklist. This process will be piloted in our Winter Term. In
terms of continuous improvement in teaching methods, we
will also establish an examination board to conduct a post
assessment moderation process that includes reviewing our
students’ achievements. These processes, together with
appropriate feedback for students, will lead to the continuous
improvement that is already in place through our college and
university curriculum committees.

How does the Assessment Strategy Committee collaborate with faculty and stakeholders to address
challenges in implementing the strategy and facilitate ongoing enhancements?

Firstly, the Assessment Strategy Committee is made up of members from each college that have been selected
by the college deans. Each member is empowered to provide input into the strategy. At the same time, two
workshops have been presented for faculty under the auspices of the Smart Learning Center. One was
related to the assessment strategy and what it is trying to achieve, and the other was related to the broader
assessment landscape-including the alignment of learning outcomes. Both workshops were presented face
to face with an online option for those at different campuses and each attracted in excess of 80 participants.
Another workshop is coming up on the 19th of January, which focuses on the development of assessment
rubrics. We are also capturing the types of assessments that are currently used across all colleges at ADU. This
will give us insights into what innovations are used in assessment practice, which will be shared with all faculty.
In addition, we are in the process of gathering all of the assessment guidelines from each college so that these
can be incorporated in the strategy. In that way we will build on existing assessment frameworks to improve
them where necessary rather than reinventing the wheel.

Abu Dhabi University | SMART Learning Center Newsletter Issue 1