An EVS Clicker-Based Assessment for Radical Transparency in Marking Criteria

Over four iterations of a large course (>180 students) in introductory e-media design in a first year computer science course, we have seen a year-on-year improvement. We believe this is done to the use of EVS clickers for feed-forward assessment: that is to say, a method of getting the whole class to evaluate previous cohorts’ submissions in public and discussing them, bringing to light the various properties they possess and how this maps to the marking rubric. This is what we mean by radical transparency—making the criteria by which academic work is judged radically transparent. This impacts on the students practices as they attempt their assignment. Over time, the practice has become more refined, principally through a rewritten criteria sheet, better training samples, and finally the development of a hybrid in-class assessment: an assessment combining both formative and summative practices and relying on its visibly social nature for its transformative power. This involves (a) evaluating previous submissions (in a non-graded way)—allowing for the free exercise of subjective judgment not measured against any “authoritative” standard, but also (b) answering a set of objective questions about the work being assessed (what techniques were used to realize various effects). It ensures full cohort coverage together with engagement with the marking criteria.