Optionality in Assessment: A cross institutional exploration of the feasibility, practicality & utility of student choices in assessment in UK higher education
Publication date: 31 Oct 2023
This project explored the scope, feasibility and practicalities of enabling optionality in assessment, which provides students with some choice over how they are assessed.
Assessment optionality allows students to have a level of decision-making about when, how and in what format they submit assessments, and whether this is individual or collaborative. This flexibility can bring many benefits, including greater inclusivity and wellbeing, tailored support for diverse learning styles and enhanced student experiences.
The research underpinning this project was wide-ranging, including surveys, focus groups and interviews with teaching staff, students, external examiners, regulators, accreditors, international higher education professionals and administrators. This resulted in findings and recommendations on numerous topics, including student engagement, inclusive assessment, fairness, student outcomes and potential challenges.
Discover the recommendations and resources from this project:
- Two short videos outlining the project approach and its nine key recommendations
- Project report, with findings and advice
- Case studies giving practical examples of the use of optionality in assessment
- Presentation and padlet from the practice-sharing conference held on 3 November 2023
- Presentation from the Student Quality Network on 7 May 2024.
Outputs
Watch the project videos
Check out these two short videos, each under four minutes long, to find out more about the work that was undertaken and nine optionality in assessment recommendations:
Read the project report
The project report explores the feasibility and practicalities of giving students choice in their assessment.
It starts with a brief literature review before sharing findings from the project, with views from both staff and students. It also includes nine recommendations for the sector, enabling staff to continue to improve the student experience – and develop more inclusive and effective assessment methods.
Two key recommendations are:
- Inclusive assessment: Prioritise the introduction of diverse assessment formats to explicitly address accessibility. Crucially, also ensure that resources and skills development are available to prevent unintentionally widening awarding gaps.
- Student engagement: Staff should actively engage their students in the design process to create meaningful assessment options that reflect students’ interests.
Explore all the findings and recommendations in the report.
The project team curated 12 case studies from across the four institutions involved. These practical examples will support and inspire those looking to embed student choice into their assessment.
Author(s) and Institution |
Discipline and Form of assessment |
| Tim Jones University of Manchester |
Engineering Engineering Feasibility Report and individual presentation View case study |
| Nicole Brown University College London |
Interdisciplinary module entitled "Disability, Chronic illness and Neurodivergence in Contemporary Society" Choice of essay or recorded presentation based on artefacts students create in any medium of their choice View case study |
| Cathy Elliott University College London |
Politics Portfolio View case study |
| Monika Pazio Rossiter Imperial College London |
Higher Education Essay or a recorded presentation View case study |
| Susan Laura Ramsdale University of Manchester |
Nursing Students choose their own assessment format View case study |
| Elizabeth Hauke Imperial College London |
Transdisciplinary Self-Designed Project View case study |
| Susie Miles University of Manchester |
Education Essay (including a non-graded formative assignment) View case study |
| Manuela Mura & Silke Donahue Imperial College London |
Biomedical Sciences Oral presentation, written exam & laboratory project report View case study |
| Paul McFarlane University College London |
Crime Science Essay - briefing report - video View case study |
| Timothy Doheny-Adams & Rachel Hope University of York |
Biology Presentation - show and tell View case study |
| Chris Millson & Jennie Blake University of Manchester |
Interdisciplinary / Education Format is flexible, suggested formats are variations on a blog post View case study |
| Jon Chandler University College London |
History Website / report View case study |
A practice-sharing conference was held online on 3 November 2023 to discuss the project’s key findings, explore further examples of optionality in assessment and present case studies.
Break-out groups enabled participants to share their thoughts and experiences about the benefits and practical challenges of implementing assessment optionality in modules and courses. Access the conference presentation and Padlet below:
Presentation: Optionality in Assessment - What works and what are the barriers?
Publication date: 15 Nov 2023
Conference Padlet
Project lead:
University of Manchester
Project partners:
Imperial College London, University of York and University College London
Other Collaborative Enhancement Projects
QAA supports a number of projects every year, covering a range of topics and interest areas. Each is led by a QAA Member, working in collaboration with other members institutions. You can find more information on all projects, and access resources and outputs, on our website.