The Assessment Journey Programme at Sheffield Hallam University has been formed to investigate, define and deliver the changes needed to provide a seamless and improved assessment experience for students and staff, and improve the operational effectiveness of assessment and feedback delivery. Working with students and staff as well as engaging with the JISC EMA Project, the Programme has developed a clear picture of what we currently do, and has identified good practices and the changes needed in order to shape the institutional vision for assessment and the technology required within it. During this workshop, we will share Sheffield Hallam University’s principles and vision for assessment and the resulting lifecycle developed to frame and describe the assessment experience of each stage of the lifecycle and for each set of stakeholders, and how this will develop the Programme’s shape, the sequence of delivery and its component projects. We will also report on the proposed technological future state for online management of assessment, which builds on successful initiatives at the University to research, develop and promote efficient and effective assessment and feedback strategies through the use of Blackboard solutions. Using the lifecycle and the future state model, participants will be asked to reflect on how these look for their own institutions, and consider how Blackboard might realise the future state for online management of assessment through existing functionality or bespoke customisations.

1. Developing a system function future
state for online management of
assessment
Stuart Hepplestone and Scott Porter
Sheffield Hallam University, UK1

2. Workshop schedule
13:40-13:45 (5 mins) Welcome
13:45-13:55 (10 mins) Presentation: Assessment Journey Programme
13:55-14:10 (15 mins) Activity: vision and lifecycle
14:10-14:25 (15 mins) Presentation: technical model
14:25-14:45 (20 mins) Activity: key developments
14:45-14:50 (5 mins) Presentation: stakeholder benefits
14:50-15:05 (15 mins) Activity: implications for your role
15:05-15:10 (5 mins) Final thoughts and questions
15:10 Session end
2

3. Workshop outcomes
By the end of this workshop, participants will:
• learn how the Assessment Journey Programme at
Sheffield Hallam University is delivering a seamless
and improved assessment experience
• consider how the accompanying assessment lifecycle
and technological future state model reflects that of
their own institutions
• deliberate how Blackboard might realise the future state for online management of
assessment
• consider the potential implications of online management of assessment for their
own role
3

4. About Sheffield Hallam University
4
• One of largest universities in the UK
• Over 33,000 students (26,000 undergraduate and 7,000 postgraduate students)
• Over 2,100 academic staff
• 4 teaching faculties covering 18 academic departments
• Over 700 courses

5. Assessment Journey Programme
• Will investigate, define and deliver the changes needed to provide a seamless and
improved assessment experience for students and staff, as well as improving the
operational effectiveness of assessment delivery
• Delivered over 3 years
• Two deliverables:
– Assessment Design and Delivery (ADD)
– Online Management of Assessment (OMA)
• Executive sponsors:
– Deputy Vice-Chancellor
– Secretary and Registrar
5

6. Assessment Journey Programme
Will support the University Strategy
and delivery of an excellent
educational experience by:
• delivering clear and accessible
guidance and information around
assessment design, marking and feedback
• providing a view of upcoming assessments for the academic year
• online submission and receipting of assessments
• publishing feedback and marks online
• delivering an integrated technical model for single mark entry
• providing access to a course view of feedback and assessment outcomes
6

7. Vision and lifecycle
7
Assessment is recognised as an integral part of
the University strategy
Assessments are designed around clear learner
focused principles
Expectations for assessment are clearly set around
what is required, how work will be assessed and
when this will be submitted
The assessment experience for students and staff is
clear and coherent, providing integrated processes
and one point of access for assessment related
information
Students will primarily submit work online and
will have access to all feedback and their marks,
online from a single point of access
Feedback tools and resources are made available
that support staff to generate useful feedback for
students quickly and consistently
Marking criteria and practice is clear, fair and
transparent
Assessment processes are effective and efficient
and activities are automated as far as possible
There is single mark entry and a single
authoritative data source for marks and
assessment data
Systems and processes should be intuitive and
guide students, academic and professional
services staff through the entire assessment cycle
Lifecycle adapted from, and attributed to,
Manchester Metropolitan University
http://www.celt.mmu.ac.uk/assessment/index.php

8. Timescale for implementation
8
Academic Year 2015/16
Formal introduction of the Assessment Design and
Delivery Framework across the University: this will be
implemented in advance of any formal policy on online
submission and feedback to enable staff to align
assessment practice with the framework's guidance
and move towards managing assessment online.
Academic Year 2016/17
Implement online management of assessment including
submission and feedback to levels 4 and 7
(plus existing/early adopters for levels 5 and 6).
Academic Year 2017/18
Implement to all other levels.
• Implementation strategy considers
any changes in policy needed to
deliver online submission and
feedback
• Policies to be developed in tandem
with changes to practice, delivery
and management of assessment –
‘pathway to policy’

9. Activity 1: vision and lifecycle
9
• In small groups, discuss how the vision
and lifecycle reflects the assessment
process at your institution: (10 mins)
1. is there anything in our vision and
lifecycle that is different from your
process?
2. is there anything in your process
that is missing from our vision and
lifecycle?
• Share any comments or thoughts
(5 mins)

10. Technical model
10
• SITS and Blackboard-based
architecture. Additional reporting
elements via the data warehouse
• Incremental developments
• Work is also dependent on more
detailed data being set up in SITS
• Main functions of the model will
be developed in partnership with
students and staff and will
consider practice, policy, process
and organisational design

11. Technical model: key developments
11
• Assessment portal:
– students should be able to see upcoming tasks and results of completed tasks in a single view
• Data into SITS:
– determine data required to update systems and automate processes
– auto-creation of Blackboard sites and assignment submission points. What about extensions
management, referrals and deferrals?
• Integrated text-matching:
– all text-based summative submissions to be automatically checked for originality
• Receipting:
– online submissions receipted using Advanced Receipting Building Block
– but for offline?

12. Technical model: key developments
12
• Print to mark
– service provided for academic staff who do not wish to read student work on-screen
• Batch upload
– tool to bulk upload electronic feedback files to the Blackboard Grade Centre
• Mark transfer
– marks inputted into the Blackboard Grade Centre are automatically transferred to SITS
• Reassessment
– transfer of information from SITS to create a new submission point in Blackboard for
affected students

13. Activity 2: key developments
13
• Consider the key development
from the technical model given to
your table
• Discuss and describe: (15 mins)
1. The requirements
2. The benefits
3. The risks or issues
4. Any decisions to be taken
• Share the main requirements,
and one key benefit, risk and
decision (10 mins)

14. Activity 2: key developments
14
• Assessment portal:
– students should be able to see upcoming tasks and results of completed tasks in a single
view
• Recording offline submissions:
– confirmation process that work submitted offline has been received
• Print to mark:
– service provided for academic staff who do not wish to read student work on-screen
• Batch upload:
– tool to bulk upload electronic feedback files to the Blackboard Grade Centre

15. Benefits for students
• Consistent assessment experience between modules
• Improved visibility of upcoming assessments and electronic deadline
reminders
• Clear guidance and framework to provide understanding of, and
confidence in, the assessment process
• Reduced printing and travel costs
• Eliminates dual submissions
• Access to marks and feedback from a single location
• Automatic receipting of online submission of assessments
• Work is stored securely and backed-up
• Improved clarity and understanding of feedback
• Meeting student expectations – everything online
15

16. Benefits for academic staff
• Assessment guidance to support assessment design and
delivery across modules, courses and programmes
• Principles, guidance and tools to enable innovation of practice
• Automated Blackboard site set up and creation of assignment
submission points
• Immediate access to submitted assessments
• Convenience of not having to collect or carry large quantities of paper
• Convenience of electronic filing and security of having work backed up online
• Ability to moderate marks online
• Being able to perform text-matching checks in the same environment as marking
• Provision of appropriate equipment and technologies to support electronic marking:
– Marking Practices and Preferences Survey
16

17. Benefits for professional services staff
• Reduction in managing, receipting, sorting and returning
physical submissions
• Reduction in student queries resulting from clear and
accessible assessment guidance and framework, and
confidence automatic receipting of assessment submissions
• Single mark entry via Blackboard reduces time, and potential
error, in entering marks into the student record system (SITS)
17

18. Activity 3: implications for your role
18
• Considering the vision and
lifecycle, the technical model, and
the benefits ...
... what would be the implication
of implementing online
management of assessment for
your role
(5 mins)
• Discuss with your table ...
(5 mins)
• ... and for each role identified on
your table share the key
implication with the wider group
(5 mins)

19. Communication and engagement
• Our attendance at departmental, subject group/course meetings ...
• ... their attendance at standing meetings and groups
• Regular newsletter
• Contribution via faculty programme and project
contacts
• Engagement in topic-specific workshops and
discussion papers
• Student focus groups
• Academic champions and case study contributions
• Marking practices and preferences survey
19

20. Any questions?
• Contact:
– Stuart Hepplestone
s.j.hepplestone@shu.ac.uk
– Scott Porter
s.porter@shu.ac.uk
20