Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices

Documents are usually circulated as carriers of transparent information. They can serve as evidence of accountability. In fact, they embody the most desired value of managerialism, where the culture of audit and compliance is fully served and delivered in written and textual form. This article expl...

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Main Author: Judith Enriquez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Liverpool John Moores University 2020-09-01
Series:PRISM
Subjects:
Online Access:https://openjournals.ljmu.ac.uk/prism/article/view/369
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author Judith Enriquez
author_facet Judith Enriquez
author_sort Judith Enriquez
collection DOAJ
description Documents are usually circulated as carriers of transparent information. They can serve as evidence of accountability. In fact, they embody the most desired value of managerialism, where the culture of audit and compliance is fully served and delivered in written and textual form. This article explores assessment by attending to its principal instrument – the document – through which it is organised, monitored and implemented in higher education. It is an invitation to ‘see’ what documents, such as, module guides, ‘do’ for universities and the assessment practices of academics. Under close scrutiny, documents ‘do’ more than record and transfer information. Their associated paper-work expresses and reproduces norms, patterns of thoughts and work habits that are accepted and assumed to be shared in the prevailing outcome-based assessment systems of higher education. This article provides a critical account based on practice-oriented and material-semiotic approaches to assessment. It bears witness to the past and persistent norms and standards that are shaped by documents, paper-work, control, compliance and surveillance and less by pedagogical and student engagement.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2514-5347
language English
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publisher Liverpool John Moores University
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spelling doaj-art-101a157b3464415c8c66eddb947cd7782025-02-03T03:18:10ZengLiverpool John Moores UniversityPRISM2514-53472020-09-0131Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practicesJudith Enriquez0Liverpool John Moores University Documents are usually circulated as carriers of transparent information. They can serve as evidence of accountability. In fact, they embody the most desired value of managerialism, where the culture of audit and compliance is fully served and delivered in written and textual form. This article explores assessment by attending to its principal instrument – the document – through which it is organised, monitored and implemented in higher education. It is an invitation to ‘see’ what documents, such as, module guides, ‘do’ for universities and the assessment practices of academics. Under close scrutiny, documents ‘do’ more than record and transfer information. Their associated paper-work expresses and reproduces norms, patterns of thoughts and work habits that are accepted and assumed to be shared in the prevailing outcome-based assessment systems of higher education. This article provides a critical account based on practice-oriented and material-semiotic approaches to assessment. It bears witness to the past and persistent norms and standards that are shaped by documents, paper-work, control, compliance and surveillance and less by pedagogical and student engagement. https://openjournals.ljmu.ac.uk/prism/article/view/369social practicedocument analysisoutcome-based assessmentBloom's taxonomyintended learning outcomes
spellingShingle Judith Enriquez
Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
PRISM
social practice
document analysis
outcome-based assessment
Bloom's taxonomy
intended learning outcomes
title Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
title_full Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
title_fullStr Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
title_full_unstemmed Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
title_short Paper-work: what module guides have to say about assessment practices
title_sort paper work what module guides have to say about assessment practices
topic social practice
document analysis
outcome-based assessment
Bloom's taxonomy
intended learning outcomes
url https://openjournals.ljmu.ac.uk/prism/article/view/369
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