Mudanças aceleradas tanto na sociedade quanto na esfera contábil compelem uma necessidade de novas abordagens para a educação dos futuros profissionais da contabilidade. Desse modo, órgãos como o International Accounting Standards Board com o objetivo de promover maior qualidade à educação dos futuros profissionais desenvolveu padrões estabelecendo melhores práticas para a educação na área. Estudos apontam deficiências em relação às competências apresentadas pelos profissionais graduados por meio do ensino tradicional e as metodologias ativas de ensino se enquadram adequadamente como uma estratégia para auxiliar na solução do problema. Para isso, o trabalho buscou analisar a aplicação de metodologias ativas de ensino que trabalhassem o desenvolvimento de competências no curso de Ciências Contábeis. Por meio de uma amostra de 30 estudantes em um curso de graduação de uma universidade pública brasileira foram utilizadas a avaliação por pares e a autoavaliação em um ambiente virtual onde foram aplicados três ciclos de atividades. Ao final dos ciclos os estudantes participaram de um grupo focal com o propósito de fornecer evidências sobre as competências trabalhadas. Os resultados apontaram certa melhora no desempenho dos estudantes ao longo dos ciclos, assim como uma maior correlação entre as notas no terceiro ciclo. A percepção dos estudantes foi que tais métodos promovem o comportamento colaborativo principalmente por meio dos feedbacks, no entanto mostraram-se apreensivos quanto ao comportamento ético de seus colegas ao realizar as avaliações. Esses fatores indicam a utilidade dos métodos ao promover o desenvolvimento de competências exigidas do profissional do futuro / Accelerated changes in both, society and the accounting sphere, compel a need for new approaches to the education of future accounting professionals. In this way entities such as International Accounting Standards Board, with the objective of promoting higher quality education, have developed standards establishing best pratices for education in accounting. Studies indicate that the competences promoted by traditional learning methods do not supply market needs and active learning fit adequately as a possible solution to the problem. Therefore this paper analyzed the application of a strategy to develop competences in accountancy graduation course. The active learning methods used were peer and self assessment, for data analysis three cycles activities were applied enabling up to 90 observations. At the end of the cycles the students participated in a focus group with the purpose of providing evidence on the competences worked with the methods. The results showed an improvement in students\' performance along the activities, as well as a higher correlation between the grades in the third activity. The students\' perception was that such methods promote collaborative behavior mainly through feedback, but they were apprehensive about the ethical behavior of their colleagues when performing the evaluations. These factors indicate the usefulness of the methods in promoting the work of new competences and show the necessity of their application with greater continuity

Magister Educationis - MEd / This study aims to investigate the assessment of students in the English for Academic Purposes course at the University of Namibia Language Centre. There has been increasing criticism of standardised test and examinations and it has brought into question the value of other indirect approaches to language assessment (Reeves, 2000; Sharifi, & Hassaskhah, 2011; Tsagari, 2004). The study draws its theoretical foundation from the constructivist’s view of education (Canagarajah, 1999; Schunk, 2009; Vygotsky, 1962). The study embraces the interpretivist approach to research which tends to be more qualitative, and is open to diverse ways that people may understand and experience the same non-manipulated objective reality. The participants in this study are students and lecturers of the English for Academic Purposes course at the University of Namibia Language Centre. The study employs a qualitative research design, along with triangulation, where qualitative data was collected through lecturer interviews, lesson observations, multiple intelligence inventory, and student focus groups discussions. The study adapted the thematic approach of data analysis where the data were analysed and presented under themes derived from the research questions of the study. The findings indicate that, there was a limited stock of assessments that suits the classification of alternative assessment, namely: checklists, student-lecturer question techniques, and academic essay. The findings reveal some factors that influence the integration of alternative assessment in academic writing instruction, such as: lecturers and students’ knowledge of assessment, students’ assessment preferences, authenticity, classroom setup, and feedback. The findings also showed that the assessment practices that were used by the lecturers did not seem to fulfil the ideologies advocated in Gardener’s (1984) theory of Multiple Intelligences. However, the study found that the students and lecturers’ attitude which was skewed towards the positive direction may be an indication that there could be hope for success in attempts to integrate alternative assessment in academic writing instruction.

Historically, the Nuu-chah-nulth People of Vancouver Island passed down knowledge and skills utilizing methods analogous with traditional Indigenous pedagogies around the world. These traditional teaching and assessment methods of the Nuu-chah-nulth have ensured the successful transfer of important physical, mental, cultural and spiritual knowledge over thousands of years. Within these pedagogies, assessment and evaluation is integral and inclusive, achieved through authentic and holistic means. Conversely, contemporary assessment in the post-secondary realm, despite endeavours to integrate formative assessment more frequently, tends toward a summative end result. The historical traditional assessment methods of the Nuu-chah-nulth exemplify holistic values and are illustrated through the concept of heshook-ish-tsawalk, or ‘everything is connected’. This dissertation argues that there are insights to be gleaned from identifying these assessment and evaluation methods, and in bringing them forward into contemporary pedagogy. Through a series of in-depth interviews, the researcher examined the learning and teaching understandings and experiences of several Nuu-chah-nulth Elders and cultural experts. Interviews took place within the homes of the Elders, and care was taken to ensure representation across a wide range of Nuu-chah-nulth territory. Augmenting these interviews, the researcher examined translated recordings of past Nuu-chah-nulth Elders while reflecting on her personal experiences as a Nuu-chah-nulth person. These personal experiences were analyzed through a self-study style examination of her own journey through education, and her recollections of traditional and contemporary assessment practice. Significant themes emerged from the collected data, including the overarching importance of time, relationships, echoing, and demonstration in historical Nuu-chah-nulth assessment. These themes fit naturally within a circular medicine wheel framework, which effectively illuminates the holistic and connected nature of an Indigenous pedagogy. This study concludes that these themes hold significant importance for contemporary assessment practice. / Graduate

Choi Suet Yung Jasmine. / "Running head: Development of team player behavior inventory." / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 57-63). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.2 / ABSTRACT --- p.5 / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.3 / INTRODUCTION / Prevalence of teamwork --- p.7 / Objective of the present paper --- p.7 / Definition of team --- p.8 / Definition of good team-player --- p.8 / Criterion for measuring team functioning --- p.9 / Literature review on effective teams --- p.10 / Profile of a good team-player --- p.14 / Group assessment as the assessing method --- p.15 / Validation Procedures --- p.16 / METHOD / Participants --- p.17 / Item Development / Literature research --- p.17 / Empirical interviews --- p.18 / Item categorization --- p.19 / The seven dimensions --- p.20 / Rating method and observer training / Behavioral observation scale --- p.21 / Rating scale --- p.22 / Observer training --- p.23 / Procedure of the workshop / Two tasks / Build-a-tower --- p.25 / NASA Moon Survival Task --- p.25 / Personality assessments --- p.26 / Other measurements --- p.30 / Development workshop evaluation --- p.31 / Dependent variables --- p.31 / Control variables --- p.33 / RESULTS / Inter-rater reliability --- p.33 / Construct validity / Construct validity ´ؤ convergent and discriminant validity --- p.34 / Comparisons of observers ratings and participants mutual ratings --- p.35 / Construct validity - personality measurements --- p.37 / Correlational analyses of CPAI and TPBI --- p.40 / Predictive validity / Tower height --- p.42 / Completion time for tower task --- p.43 / Group score in NASA Moon Survival Journey --- p.43 / Completion time for NASA task --- p.44 / Project grade --- p.44 / Individual Criterion / NASA individual score --- p.45 / Process satisfaction --- p.48 / Process satisfaction controlled group acquaintances rating --- p.49 / Development workshop evaluation --- p.51 / GENERAL DISCUSSION / Brief summary --- p.51 / The seven dimensions --- p.51 / Possible uses of TPBI --- p.53 / Further research --- p.54 / REFERENCES --- p.57 / LIST OF TABLES --- p.64 / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.74 / APPENDIX / Appendix I Detail definitions of the 38-items --- p.78 / Appendix II Experimental procedures --- p.86 / Appendix III Standard script for the experiment --- p.87 / Appendix IV Experimental materials for NASA task --- p.92 / Appendix V Self-report measure --- p.94 / Appendix VI Correlation analyses of CPAI and TPBI --- p.103

This article reviews the Electronically Activated Recorder (EAR) as an ambulatory ecological momentary assessment tool for the real-world observation of daily behavior. Technically, the EAR is an audio recorder that intermittently records snippets of ambient sounds while participants go about their lives. Conceptually, it is a naturalistic observation method that yields an acoustic log of a person’s day as it unfolds. The power of the EAR lies in unobtrusively collecting authentic real-life observational data. In preserving a high degree of naturalism at the level of the raw recordings, it resembles ethnographic methods; through its sampling and coding, it enables larger empirical studies. This article provides an overview of the EAR method; reviews its validity, utility, and limitations; and discusses it in the context of current developments in ambulatory assessment, specifically the emerging field of mobile sensing.

The aim of my work is to analyze students' awareness of assessment centers (AC). In the theoretical part, I explain the concept of AC and describe AC techniques. The practical part consists of two questionnaires. The first one was filled in by students of Czech universities and my goal was to determine whether they know what the term AC means and what the main tasks are. The second questionnaire was sent among JOSZEF program graduates who had participated in a two-day AC in Austria. In this case my intention was to get opinions on specific tasks that we performed, and the overall impression of the AC.

Background: Self-assessment is widely used across the health professions for a variety of purposes, including appraisal, CPD and revalidation. Despite numerous reported short-comings, the use of self-assessment is increasing, frequently on the requirements of regulatory bodies. Traditionally it has been a paper exercise, but in recent years self-assessment has appeared in electronic portfolios – a medium often used to collate assessments and other educational requirements. This thesis evaluates the effectiveness of self-assessment, in particular delivered via an e-portfolio, to determine if it: ? Improves the accuracy of perception of learning needs ? Promotes appropriate change in learner activity ? Improves clinical practice Methods: This thesis is comprised of two systematic reviews and a case study. The first of two systematic reviews examines the evidence for effectiveness of self-assessment in the three research questions. The second evaluates the effectiveness of portfolios as a medium for postgraduate healthcare education. Both reviews are notable in that they employ systematic review methodology on non-clinical questions and amalgamate quantitative and qualitative data. The final research component is an exploratory case study that tests the questions against a large data set (an entire training year of Scottish Foundation doctors) collated by the NHS ePortfolio. The case study provided the opportunity to separate groups of self-assessors identified by the literature, and compare the groups’ self-scores against those of their supervisors and peers in the first and final post rotations; additionally, the groups’ behaviour was matched against the literature for related educational activities recorded by the ePortfolio such as personal development planning. The case study also allowed the medium of e-portfolios to be itself evaluated in practice as an educational infrastructure. Through the comprehensive and iterative examination of the large dataset it became apparent that quantitative analysis was of limited value and qualitative analysis of elicited the richness on the data in context. Results: With both reviews, the original research questions were unable to be fully answered due to the paucity of evidence of sufficient quality; however, both did discover relevant related evidence. The self-assessment review found competent practitioners are the best able to self-assess whilst the least competent are the least able to self-assess. Peer assessment was found to be more accurate than self and better aligns with faculty/supervisor assessment. Feedback and benchmarking can improve self-assessment accuracy, especially for the most competent, and video can be seen to enhance this. There is no conclusive evidence that gender or culture effect self-assessment ability. Practical skills are better self-assessed than knowledge-based or “soft” skills. The portfolio review found summative assessment reliability improved with multiple raters and discussion between the raters. Evidence on whether portfolio use aided reflection was mixed, possibly because it was dependent on individual conditions. The engagement and support of supervisors is key to portfolios being used properly, and there is some evidence portfolio learners are less passive then non-users. The time required to effectively use a portfolio is rarely considered. Although many of the literature’s findings were born out by the case study, the data also revealed (often by omission) many flaws in the use of self-assessment and related activities, many of which can be ascribed to the training year examined Much of the qualitative examination of text corresponded with the wider literature with low self-raters being over-critical of their often superior skills and high self-raters being over confident. However, there was some dissonance with the literature in the final component in that supervisor scoring conflicted with expectations whilst there text comments continued to match the literature. Conclusions: Assessment in post-graduate health care is high stakes and resource-intensive. Self-assessment, and its use within an electronic portfolio, is demonstrated to have enormous potential if properly implemented.

No / We describe a study conducted during 2009-12 into innovative assessment practice, evaluating an assessed coursework task on a final year Medical Genetics module for Biomedical Science undergraduates. An authentic e-assessment coursework task was developed, integrating objectively marked online questions with an online DNA sequence analysis tool (BLAST), routinely used by NHS and research professionals. The aim was to combine the assessment of understanding of complex module learning outcomes with real-world authentic skills highly valued in the work place. This approach challenges the oft-heard accusation that online computer-marked tests can lack validity and authenticity in higher education. The study demonstrates the content and construct validity of this form of e-assessment, showing that careful question design, allied with integration with the real life BLAST tool, enables instructors to assess complex higher order understanding, and requires students to demonstrate skills relevant for the work place. A study of three years of test results and measures of internal consistency data also show the reliability of this assessment. In addition, the results of surveys of student opinion and positive feedback from student module feedback questionnaires suggest that it is effective in terms of face validity.

This study was a correlational investigation of the effect of student demographic characteristics, prior academic performance, college academic performance, and college status on general education achievement at a rural community college in Tennessee. The criterion variable in this study was student performance on the Academic Profile examination, a nationally normed standardized test published by the Educational Testing Service that is designed to measure academic skills in general education subject areas. The population for this study included students at Walters State Community College located in Morristown, Tennessee, who had completed or were nearing completion of a minimum of 60 semester hours required for an associate degree and who had applied for graduation during the academic year 2003. All students in this study sat for the Academic Profile examination as a final requirement for graduation and their scores were posted in the college's student information system. Other data extracted from the student information system and used in this study include race, age, gender, evidence of financial need, zip code of permanent residence, type of degree earned, ACT composite score, placement test requirement, undergraduate grade point average, general education credit hours, grades earned in general education courses, evidence of college preparatory course participation, transfer status, and the dates of first and last terms graded. Variables were analyzed using descriptive techniques appropriate to the level of measurement of each variable including t-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's r, and stepwise multiple regression. The statistical analyses indicated that race, age, ACT composite score, placement test requirement, undergraduate and general education GPA, college preparatory course participation, and length of time between first and last semesters had a relationship to student performance on the Academic Profile examination. The ACT composite score was the strongest predictor of student performance on the examination. Although this study addressed only a small number of variables affecting achievement in general education, it contributes to the literature by identifying interesting relationships among student variables that could be explored. The study also indicates that standardized tests that measure student general education achievement may not be the best assessment measures for public community colleges with open admission policies.

The purpose of this study was to determine the most appropriate methods of assessment for online courses. Internet instructors were surveyed and asked which methods of assessment they use in the online courses that they teach and how effective they perceive those methods to be in determining if the learning objectives have been met for the course(s) that they teach online. The findings of this study indicated that there is a difference between some academic disciplines in relation to the type of assessment methods being used in online courses. There is a difference in perceived effectiveness of assessment methods among the individual instructors surveyed. The most effective means of assessment as determined by the survey results is individual projects. The least effective method of assessment as determined by the survey results is self-assessment. The study's results confirmed that objective testing is not considered the most effective method of assessment; however, several instructors still use this method because of time constraints. The study's results confirmed that a variety of assessment methods need to be used within each Internet course to determine the effectiveness of the course. Surprisingly, there was no difference in the assessment methods being used by those instructors who received training and those who did not. This conclusion could be because the training received by most online instructors was in Blackboard and/or technology and not assessment methods. There is a difference in the number of types of assessment being used by online instructors. The survey data indicated that there was not a difference in assessment methods being used by instructors who have taught for more than three years as compared to instructors who have taught three or fewer years. The study indicated that there is a difference in some of the types of assessments being used by instructors who teach more than one Internet course per year. Not surprisingly, instructors who have a large number of students and/or course sections resort to objective testing methods only because they do not have time to grade alternative assessment formats.