Learning and Teaching Committee

Curriculum Sub-Committee

Subject: Group Work

Origin: Programme Development & Quality Team

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The Programme Development & Quality Team, at its meeting on 25 September 2006, considered a paper from Derek Blease on the outcomes of consultation with departments regarding the draft ‘University policy statement on group working – minimum requirements’. The relevant minute follows below.

Noted

(i) that feedback had been generally positive;

(ii) that the issue which had given rise to most concern was item 4, which was the requirement that the assessment of group work include an element of either individual or peer assessment or both;

(iii) that it was important to ensure that due consideration was given to the overall volume of group work within the programme Part and to the proportion of the Part mark that was obtained from group work. This had been a concern to CSC and was a key factor which it looked at in the assessment matrix;

(iii) that Derek had devised a ‘guide for staff’ on the organisation, management and assessment of group work, which had been distributed to PDQ and others for comment on CD-Rom before it was made available online;

(iv) that the guide handled issues such as the development of team working skills which it was not appropriate to cover in any detail in the broad policy statement;

(v) that following a successful bid from the engCETL, JISC was funding a joint research and development project with the University of Hull which would incorporate work on the re-development of ‘Web PA’ as an online peer assessment application.

Agreed

(i) that the amendments to item 4 in the policy statement (and consequential amendments to 5(i)) proposed in the covering paper be approved;

(ii) that, subject to the above, the policy statement be forwarded to CSC for any comment, with the suggestion that the format of the assessment matrix be adjusted so that the information it provided about group work assessment would show whether or not a department was meeting the minimum requirements incorporated in the policy statement;

(iii) that the policy statement be recommended to LTC for implementation with full effect from 2007/08.