The Student View on Assessment and Feedback 2023

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Contents
1. A Word from the <strong>Student</strong>s' Union President… Page 3
2. An Introduction: <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> on Assessment & Feedback… Page 4
3. <strong>The</strong> Data… Page 5
4. Feedback Quality… Page 7
5. Assessment Scheduling… Page 9
6. Assessment Guidance… Page 10
7. Assessment Types & Changes… Page 11
8. Extenuating Circumstances & Appeals… Page 12
9. Strikes… Page 13
10. Artificial Intelligence… Page 13
11. Recommendations… Page 14
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Gina Dunn
<strong>Student</strong>s’ Union President
<strong>Student</strong> feedback provides the University
and <strong>Student</strong>s' Union with the framework to
improve, enhance and shape the
experience of being a student at Cardiff.
Each year, the <strong>Student</strong>s' Union collects
feedback through campaigns such as
Speak Week, where we ask students what
they would keep and change if they ran
the university, and through <strong>Student</strong> Staff
Panels and College Fora. We then collate
that feedback and submit it to the
University in a document called <strong>The</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong>.
Last year, we decided to change the way we approach <strong>The</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> and in turn, our
approach to partnership. In order to focus our efforts, we submitted four 'mini' <strong>Student</strong>
<strong>View</strong>s that home in on specific themes, rather than addressing all aspects of feedback
we collected over the year.
This year we have continued in that way, submitting one in-year <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> in
December, on the Cost of Living, and three more at the end of the year focusing on key
areas that have arisen through data collection throughout the year.
Assessment and feedback are low scorers year after year in the NSS and always come
through in Speak Week comments and SSPs. <strong>The</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> on Assessment and
Feedback collates that feedback and highlights recommendations on what can be done
to improve the student experience in this area.
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> on Assessment & Feedback
Introduction
Assessment and feedback are the back bones of the academic student experience. <strong>The</strong>y
challenge students to develop new ideas or concepts, keep learners engaged and most
importantly encourage improvement within the learner. Each assessment is a learning
opportunity, giving students the opportunity to gauge their level of competence allowing
them to better understand how they learn and study. However, assessments are much more
than that to students. Often, they come hand in hand with stress and anxiety and feel more
like a hurdle than an opportunity to learn. For students’ sentiment to shift when it comes to
assessments, equal consideration must be given to what happens before, during and after
they take place. <strong>The</strong> assessment experience of a student starts during the teaching period
and continues until progression has occurred. This is a long process where students have to
juggle university life with the uncertainty of how their performance will look, and whether they
will progress to the next stage in their academic journey.
While students put more emphasis on how they will be assessed, receiving feedback should
be seen as something that is just as important, if not more so. Assessment without
appropriate and constructive feedback has no value. It is important to consider how students
engage with the feedback they receive as it usually travels in a one-way system, and it is
often received too late. This leads to a gap in understanding their performance, which in turn
reduces the opportunity for a student to learn from that assessment.
Over the last couple of years, assessment and feedback in the higher education sphere has
undertaken a significant transformation. <strong>The</strong> acceleration of digital tools in the wake of a
global pandemic saw students being assessed in settings that would have never been
considered in the past. This challenged the way in which assessments were delivered,
resulting in more authentic assessments being created and a more inclusive learning
community developing in HE institutions. Equally, it has also brought some challenges with it.
Academic integrity has greatly been impacted across the sector, and Cardiff University has
not been Immune to this.
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> on Assessment and Feedback will cover five aspects of the assessment
experience, and make relevant recommendations based on what current and past students
have told us. This will include students' views on assessment bunching, blended delivery,
and timely feedback. However, it will also begin to wrestle with some of the newest
challenges facing Higher Education, including Artificial Intelligence.
Compared to previous years, there was a much smaller number of students commenting on
academic issues. In both of the Speak Week reports from 2021 and 2022, academic issues
were the primary theme, but this was not the case in 2023. This decrease could be
attributed to how socio-economic and environmental factors such as Covid-19 and the Costof-Living
Crisis have impacted students, shifting their priorities as their basic needs are not
being met. Although academic issues were less prevalent in Speak Week 2023, now more
than ever we need to prioritise creating a progressive and supportive assessment and
feedback framework so that students can learn effectively and are able to utilise what they
have learned to support them later in life.
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<strong>The</strong> Data
In Speak Week 1, academic issues were only the third most popular theme. This theme
looks at feedback on topics such as academic courses, lectures, assessments, and
communication. In particular, the dominant sub-themes were about lectures (134
comments) and assessments (99 comments).
At the beginning of the second semester, Speak Week 2 showed a large number of
students experiencing problems receiving their timetable, with students noting lateness
of delivery as well as problems with their reliability. <strong>The</strong> sub-theme of timetabling
received 56 comments in Speak Week 1 and 84 in Speak Week 2, representing a 272%
increase, proportionally.
<strong>The</strong> sub-theme of academic events also had a notable 213% increase. <strong>The</strong> results
suggest that as students engaged with academic events throughout the year, they
wanted to be able to participate in more. <strong>The</strong>re were also increases in the number of
comments referring to placements as well as the call for a university-wide reading week.
With regards to placements, there was a 133% increase in the number of comments,
with students demanding greater autonomy, more support and reimbursement for the
work done. Similarly, to placements, there was a 92% increase in students asking for a
reading week. <strong>The</strong> table below summarises Speak Week comments by sub-theme.
Table 1 Academic comments by sub-themes
Academic:
Academic Events
(38 comments)
Assessments
(99 comments)
Learning Central
(15 comments)
Timetabling
(56 comments)
<strong>Student</strong>s showed an interest in existing academic events run
by schools, and expressed a wish to see further events, such
as external speakers, documentary screenings, and
networking events.
Comments demonstrated a concern from students who have
multiple deadlines at the same time, and a wish to see them
distributed better over time. <strong>Student</strong>s indicated a positive
response to online exams, but there were instances where
students expressed dissatisfaction at not receiving feedback
on time.
Comments received about Learning Central were mixed, with
some students providing positive feedback, but others
suggesting the system is difficult to navigate.
Timetabling received a significant number of responses, with
students who provided comments wanting to see timetables
released earlier.
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Lectures
(134 comments)
Placements
(16 comments)
Reading Week
(31 comments)
Extenuating Circumstances
(24 comments)
<strong>The</strong>re were a lot of positive comments about lectures,
including lecture content and support from lecturers.
However, some comments indicated that the recording of
lectures was not consistent, and that lectures often started
late and did not make the most of the time available.
<strong>Student</strong>s commented on the significant cost of being on
placement and expressed a desire to be paid for the work
done on placement. <strong>The</strong>y also indicated they would like
more specific support while on placement.
<strong>Student</strong>s from a range of subject areas expressed a desire
to have a university-wide reading week.
<strong>The</strong>re was a feeling among students that the extenuating
circumstances policy needs to revert back to two weeks, and
that the appeals process should be quicker, so students do
not need to re-sit assessments unnecessarily.
<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels across the University also played particular attention to assessment
and feedback. <strong>The</strong>se discussions often related to assessment guidelines, support and
study skills. <strong>Student</strong>s expressed a desire for clear guidance and help with preparing for
in-person exams and essays, with students particularly interested in support with the
transition back to face-to-face exams.
This <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> looks to examine some of these key themes in more detail. Based on
the feedback received this year, this <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> will focus on five main themes:
Feedback Quality, Assessment Scheduling, Guidance, Types, and Extenuating
Circumstances. It will also include a note of emerging challenges during the academic
year 22/23 such as the effect of strike action and the release of the Artificial Intelligence
(AI) tool chatGPT.
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Feedback Quality
Cardiff University’s ‘Academic Feedback to Taught <strong>Student</strong>s’(AFtTS) policy and guidance
document is based on the following principles:
1. Feedback supports and promotes effective learning.
2. Feedback is a continuous process.
3. Feedback needs to be suited to individual students’ needs.
<strong>The</strong>se principles underpin the policy and should be the basis of the feedback provided at
Cardiff University, however, in this section of the report, we will explore how the data we
have obtained through Speak Week, <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels and College Fora show that
from a student perspective, the guidelines stipulated in the policy based on principle 1
are not being followed.
Speak Week data on assessment and feedback highlights students’ dissatisfaction at
not receiving feedback on time, and others stated that they would like to receive more
feedback. Comments such as the ones below show students’ sentiments regarding this
matter.
"Feedback on some assessments is too late and close to exams so no time to appeal marks
due to upcoming exams priority" (Undergraduate, BISOCI, Year 3 <strong>Student</strong>)
"Feedback for assessments needs to be in greater depth" (Undergraduate, HCARE, Year 3
<strong>Student</strong>)
On occasions where assessment feedback was discussed during <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels,
students indicated that there is room for improvement and would like to see changes to
the time in which assessment feedback is delivered, as they want to be able to use their
feedback to tailor their preparation for upcoming assessments. Some of the comments
include mentions of the accessibility of feedback, feedback received too close to
upcoming deadlines, and the desire to use feedback as a tool for improvement.
"Often the feedback Is not easy for students to access" (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes, CHEMY
Undergraduate)
"<strong>Student</strong>s want feedback to offer corrections to their mistakes." (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes,
MLANG Undergraduate)
"<strong>Student</strong>s appreciate early feedback on assessments, before new assessments are set so
they are able to improve from the comments and feedback." (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes,
HCARE Postgraduate Taught)
‘Release of results from coursework, never released on the date they say they will (means
we're constantly waiting longer than we should)’ (Undergraduate, BIOSCI, Year 3 <strong>Student</strong>)
Lateness in receiving assessment feedback is the major contributing factor to students’
discontent. We believe that this time element has a significant impact on the students’
perceived quality of the feedback they receive, due to the inability of implementing the
feedback as well as the limitations to reflect on their submissions due to the passing of
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time. In the focus group findings of the recent ‘<strong>Student</strong> Experience and NSS Result
Enhancement Project’, students were asked about their schools’ turnaround time for
marked work. <strong>The</strong> results showed that only 7% of the participants were aware of the 20-
working day policy of the University, meaning that most students’ expectations are not
being met.
Generally, students feel dissatisfied with the quality of the feedback they receive,
primarily due to lateness in receiving feedback having a knock-on effect on their
academic performance. <strong>Student</strong>s do not have enough time to reflect and implement
changes to their revision technique or assessment strategy, and thus feedback would
not be promoting or supporting effective learning, as stated on Principle 1 of the AFtTS.
This is in line with the 2022 NSS results on Question 11, as seen in the table below.
NSS 2022 Cardiff University Sector Wales
Russell
Group[1]
2021 2022 2021 2022 2021 2022 2021 2022
Assessment and
Feedback
59.77 62.69 68.59 68.53 69.46 69.59 62.17 60.49
NSS Scale Question/Scale Significance
Assessment and
feedback
9. Marking and
assessment has
been fair.
Significantly below benchmark
Assessment and
feedback
11. I have received
helpful comments
on my work. Significantly below benchmark
Figure 1 Cardiff University NSS scores below benchmark for assessment and feedback
In summary, the data collated on assessment feedback shows that there are three
factors that students would like to see reflected through their feedback, and would
constitute as good-quality feedback: timely, constructive, and accessible. Consistency
across schools is also desirable, however, this is challenging due to different teaching
and marking styles of academic staff and diversity of assessment types. Nonetheless,
this disparity could be reduced through the use of a standard marking framework.
<strong>The</strong> current AFtTS policy was last updated in 2015. As the landscape of education has
changed significantly over the last few years, it is imperative that this policy is updated to
reflect those changes, as well as to ensure that guidelines are still relevant. We believe
that students should become familiar with the AFtTS policy and guidance to ensure they
feel empowered to fulfil their responsibilities as stated in the policy, as well as to
advocate for themselves should they not receive the quality of feedback they expect. <strong>The</strong>
existing rapport and trust between students and their academic school should be used
as an advantage point for engagement, as well as reassurance that the information
shared is applicable to the individual student. It should also be noted that resources and
information on assessment feedback should be readily available to students.
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Assessment Scheduling
Year on year students continue to voice discontent with the scheduling of assessments.
This includes the release of exam timetables, assessment bunching for exams and
coursework.
<strong>The</strong> Cardiff Assessment and Feedback Commitments document recognises that working
in partnership with students and staff is essential to develop changes in this area and to
ensure that commitments are being met. <strong>The</strong> document states the following:
<strong>The</strong> assessments that are set …
i. Assessments will be relevant to the course and designed to promote learning,
curiosity, and critical thinking, and to measure achievement of the course
learning outcomes.
ii. Assessments of the same method and weighting (e.g. case studies / essays /
exams) will be consistent in length within individual courses.
iii. <strong>The</strong> assessment load will be spread appropriately to ensure sufficient time is
available for: - students to engage in learning and complete tasks to the best of
their ability. - staff to manage assessment and deliver high quality and timely
feedback that will feed forward to future tasks.
Point 3 of commitment 2 on setting assessments talks about assessments being spread
appropriately to ensure student engagement and staff management of the assessment.
Based on student feedback from Speak Week and <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels, we believe that
students do not feel that this commitment reflects their experiences.
Comments demonstrated a concern from students who wish to receive exam timetables
earlier, and for assessments to be better distributed over time. <strong>The</strong> following quotes
illustrate the general frustration and upset:
‘‘Release exam timetables earlier" (Undergraduate, PHRMY, Year 1 <strong>Student</strong>)
‘‘More even distribution of assessment deadlines, especially in term 2" (Undergraduate,
SHARE, Year 3)
During <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels, many of the discussions surrounding assessment
scheduling highlight issues between coursework deadlines and exam deadlines being
too close in time, issues with assessment bunching predominantly occurring in the
second semester, and having coursework deadlines on the same day. <strong>The</strong>re is an overall
sentiment that these issues have a great impact on the academic experience of
students, as it can influence students’ performance during assessments and
repercussions on students’ mental health, due to high levels of stress in short periods of
time which might also lead to burnout.
We would like to see a more consistent implementation of the Cardiff Assessment and
Feedback Commitments highlighted as a short-term improvement. However, work should
be undertaken to revise and update the commitments based on the new landscape of
assessment methods implemented after the pandemic. For example, the shift from
exams to coursework as a preferred assessment method for some courses.
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Assessment Guidance
One large point of feedback we received from students during Speak Week was an
overall lack of guidance when it came to examinations. <strong>Student</strong>s pointed out the fact that
they often felt underprepared for examinations and would be caught out, often feeling
that their knowledge and aptitude was not properly tested due to this. More access to
graded example essays and exam question preparation during the course, as well as
better transparency as to how marks were being awarded, were cited as ways students
would like improvement when it comes to exam guidance.
Over 25% of our feedback collated from <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels regarding assessments
focussed on a lack of guidance in some respect. Some cited better guidance on
assessments and examinations as an accessibility issue, others simply did not feel
adequately prepared for writing assessments and completing examinations because not
enough support was given during the year on the subject.
‘‘More exam question prep + more exam essay examples (graded)" (Undergraduate, BIOSI,
Year 3)
‘‘More workshops where we answer questions together" (Undergraduate, BIOSI, Year 3)
‘‘<strong>Student</strong>s could benefit from more guidance on assessments." (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes,
PSYCH Postgraduate Research)
‘‘<strong>Student</strong>s would appreciate more Assessment Support and guidance such as mock exams
and essays" (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes, MEDIC Undergraduate Research)
‘‘<strong>Student</strong>s want more practice on subject specific questions. Can there be a practice test?”
(<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes, EARTH Undergraduate)
We would recommend a greater focus on exam preparation within the curriculum going
forward, including time going over essay preparation when relevant as standard practise
to ensure students are fully equipped to use and demonstrate their subject knowledge
within assessments. Modules on Learning Central to help with writing essays and
preparing for exams would also be appreciated. A full review into how students are
supported when it comes to completion of assessments is recommended going forward.
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Assessment Types & Changes
Coming out of the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many aspects of higher education
were under question. While last year’s <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> had a keen focus on blended
learning and how we could take the benefits of online learning whilst providing a
valuable face to face teaching experience for students, this year we saw a larger focus on
examinations and the somewhat uneven approach to the reintroduction of face-to-face in
the past year. <strong>The</strong> clear feeling from students was a hesitation to return to the face-toface
model prevalent before the pandemic, with many feeling that they were tested
better on actual knowledge and skills with 24-hour online assessments, or online
coursework-based modules. Accessibility is another key aspect here, with the NSS
assessment and feedback agreement gap between students with and without known
disabilities growing in the past year across the UK as face-to-face assessments start to
resume.
Over 10% of assessment and feedback data gathered from <strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panels referred
to some level of discomfort or anxiety about face-to-face examinations resuming. <strong>The</strong>re
was a clear sentiment of students feeling these examinations were not the best way to
test knowledge of the subject and instead longer-term assessments were preferred,
whether they be coursework or longer online examinations. Our Speak Week data
echoed this sentiment, with many students stressing frustration with elements of the
transition back to in person.
We recommend policy across colleges to prefer online examinations and assessments
for their students, for the modules which would allow it. This is beneficial both from an
accessibility perspective, as well as suiting the anxieties felt by students about the
antiquated nature of the in-person examination and the discomfort in returning to that
model. We want our students to feel totally equipped to present their subject knowledge
and skills when being assessed, and this seems to be the way forward catering to that
perspective.
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Extenuating Circumstances & Appeals
<strong>The</strong> 2022/23 academic year also saw the regression of Cardiff’s Extenuating
Circumstances policy to its pre-pandemic state. This has been a major point of
contention for students and has generally raised questions as to why we still use such an
antiquated system.
<strong>Student</strong>s are clearly displeased with the current state of policy, with all comments on the
subject being negative about the change. With a mental health crisis in full effect and
students being heavily impacted by the Cost-of-Living crisis, we are in dire need for a
policy which suitably helps those who are going through difficult situations which affect
their ability to complete assessments.
This is a clear accessibility issue for students which comes back to the growing gap in
agreement between students with and without declared disabilities in the NSS when it
comes to assessment and feedback.
‘‘Extenuating circumstances are not clear for 48-hr exams" (<strong>Student</strong>-Staff Panel Minutes,
ENCAP Postgraduate)
‘‘Deadline extensions - 1 week is not always enough” (Undergraduate, GEOPL. Year 3 <strong>Student</strong>)
We recommend a full review into how we can overhaul our Extenuating Circumstances
policy moving forward, looking to other Russell Group Universities to evaluate the best
practices across the sector. Cardiff <strong>Student</strong>s’ Union should have a clear voice in this
matter as well as wellbeing staff from the university. <strong>Student</strong>s’ health and wellbeing is
the utmost priority, and it should be treated as such in the field of assessment.
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External Factors
Strikes
While not a point within itself we thought it best to also mention the ongoing UCU
industrial action within this section of the <strong>Student</strong> <strong>View</strong> as it is reflected in the voices of
students we spoke to. <strong>The</strong>re is a clear discomfort in how the university is handling the
strikes across the student body. This includes a widespread sense of unpreparedness for
the marking boycott, and a desire for the university to work more closely with its staff on
the matter. We implore the university to do better in its communications with the UCU
and do everything in its power to remain transparent with its student body. <strong>The</strong>re is an
evident tension in the air over the subject and we would recommend the university make
clear steps in the near future to diffuse that tension wherever possible.
Artificial Intelligence
Open AI’s artificial intelligence chatbot, ChatGPT, came into play towards the end of
2022. This tool has caused many questions to be raised within the higher education
sphere. <strong>The</strong>se particularly focus on the potential use by students to conduct academic
misconduct during assessments, however, there is a potential for students to benefit
from this tool and use it to their advantage to enhance their learning. Similarly, there is
an opportunity for academic staff to re-think assessment methods. While the role of this
tool in HE is uncertain, it has presented institutions with an opportunity to shape how it’s
use would look like. We believe that it is crucial for the university to take a proactive
approach in this matter.
Figure 2 <strong>Student</strong> Intranet search result of the term 'chatGPT'
As seen above, currently, there is no guidance or information available to students
through the <strong>Student</strong> Intranet in relation to the use of chat GPT. Similar results appear
when searching terms like ‘Artificial Intelligence’ or ‘AI’. While information might have
been circulated to students through a school or e-mail, it must be accessible through the
<strong>Student</strong> Intranet. Clear guidelines should be made available to students as soon as
possible through the student intranet and the implementation of this guidelines should
be consistent across schools. <strong>The</strong>se guidelines would highlight ways in which students
can use AI to support their learning and show examples of when the use of AI during an
assessment would constitute as an academic misconduct matter.
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Recommendations
Recommendation 1: <strong>The</strong> University should develop a tailored communication plan to
address misconceptions of assessment feedback turnaround.
<strong>The</strong> plan should be developed in collaboration with schools and <strong>Student</strong> Champions to
address misconceptions of assessment feedback turnaround timeframes and lack of
awareness of the ‘Academic Feedback to Taught <strong>Student</strong>s’ policy amongst students. This
communications plan should be executed at school level. Additionally, as part of the
communications plan, the policy and any others relevant should be ‘’1 click away’’ from
the student on the student intranet. To achieve this, all information regarding
assessment feedback should be condensed in a single intranet page.
Recommendation 2: <strong>The</strong> University should update the current AFtTS policy in
collaboration with students and staff to ensure it is reflective of the experiences of
the current student demographic and practices in the sector.
Recommendation 3: End assessment bunching by ensuring a minimum period of
three working days between any deadline, or the automatic approval of extenuating
circumstances where this is not possible.
Recommendation 4: Implement improvements to assessment support and guidance,
with an emphasis on help with essay writing, administrative support for how to
submit assessments and integration of assessment guidance into the curriculum.
Recommendation 5: Increase the availability of online examinations for students
both in the name of comfort and accessibility.
Recommendation 6: Conduct a review into how students’ knowledge and skills are
tested in assessments, with the end goal of creating assessments not just for
assessments’ sake, but also to allow students to show their skills and hone their
subject knowledge.
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