Advancing Assessment in Co-design with Students: An evidence informed approach to enhancing practice

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi37.1774

Keywords:

advancing assessment, co-design, student partnership, assessment practice, inclusivity

Abstract

Students’ views are shifting in how they want to engage in higher education, driven by the complex socio-economic landscapes they are operating within (Hughes, 2023). This has prompted Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to reconsider how they support students with diverse ranges of needs and wellbeing issues (Firth et al., 2023). Central to this is their experience of assessment and feedback, which remains a point of weakness in their overall university experience. Therefore, it is imperative that HEIs hear their voices around learning development and assessment journeys, especially given the other demands on their time (Neves et al., 2024) and develop in co-design to build connectiveness (McIntosh and May, 2025).

The University of Southampton has developed a five-year Advancing Assessment Strategic Major Project to enhance assessment thinking and embrace new ideas and practices across the institution, underpinned by a set of principles with inclusivity and accessibility at the core. This has included the introduction of the Assessment Consultancy, established within the Centre for Higher Education Practice (CHEP), providing bespoke individual and whole-programme assessment development with a core ethos of student co-design (CHEP, 2025).

This session presented recent findings from the project and relayed the initial evaluations of these approaches to inform learning development peers and enable learning from their own and others’ experiences. The session also explored how HEIs can lay the foundations for innovation that aligns with emerging trends in assessment and feedback, such as assessment optionality and cohesive programme development design (Walker, 2025).

Author Biographies

Claire Hughes, University of Southampton, UK

Claire Hughes is the Assessment Consultancy Lead and Principal Teaching Fellow in the Centre for Higher Education Practice at the University of Southampton, leading an institution-wide project to advance assessment and feedback practice, including programmatic-level assessment. She draws from her experience as Head of Department for a Business and Law School, where she has led courses with diverse student groups and delivery methods. This included spearheading innovative programmes that harnessed blended learning, online, work-based learning and programme-level pedagogies. She has published in areas across the changing nature of student support, quality assurance and enhancement and higher degree apprenticeships.

Simon Walker, University of Southampton, UK

Simon Walker is Professor of Educational Development at the University of Southampton and holds senior academic advisory positions at the London School of Economics (LSE) and King’s College, London. Formerly, he was the Director of Programme Development at UCL and a senior consultant at Jisc, the UK sector body for digital education and leadership. He was awarded a Higher Education Academy National Teaching Fellowship in 2006 and is a Principal Fellow of Advance HE. He is the founding editor of the Journal of Educational Innovation, Partnership, and Change and established the annual Academic Practice and Technology Conference (APT).

Bobbi Moore, University of Southampton, UK

Bobbi Moore is the Education Strategic Lead and former interim Director of the Centre for Higher Education Practice (CHEP) at the University of Southampton. Bobbi is responsible for CHEP’s Education Portfolio, which includes leading actions within university-wide strategic education projects and the scholarly development of educators, including overseeing CHEP’s accredited and professional development programmes. Bobbi authored the University’s Framework for Education and currently holds senior leadership roles on two multi-year strategic education projects - aimed at improving teaching, assessment, and learning practices across the institution.

Suzanne Albary, University of Southampton, UK

Suzanne Albary is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Centre for Higher Education Practice at the University of Southampton, and part of the Assessment Consultancy. Previously, she has led undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in teaching practice and business studies. Suzanne’s work focuses on curriculum redesign to enhance the student and staff experience. She works with creative research methods, publishing on aesthetics and identity in early-career researchers, and has a research methods podcast called Do Better Research.

Declan Doyle, University of Southampton, UK

Declan Doyle is a Principal Teaching Fellow in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton, with a background as a STEM research lead. Declan has a strong track record of translating research expertise into effective teaching, having designed and delivered innovative modules that feature authentic, real-world assessments. Declan joined the Centre for Higher Education Practice (CHEP) as part of the Assessment Consultancy team, where he contributes to the development of assessment and feedback practices across the University. His work supports institution-wide efforts to enhance the quality and consistency of assessment, ensuring it aligns with strategic educational goals and fosters student engagement and achievement.

Louise Squire, University of Southampton, UK

Louise Squire is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Centre for Higher Education Practice at the University of Southampton and part of the Assessment Consultancy. She specialises in inclusive pedagogies, having previously worked extensively in disability support and inclusion in higher education. She is particularly interested in the development of institutional approaches to embedding equality and inclusivity. She is also a creative writer and has lectured and published in the areas of contemporary literature and environmental literary criticism.

Amy Wallington, University of Southampton, UK

Amy Wallington is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Assessment Consultancy within the Centre for Higher Education Practice at the University of Southampton. Prior to this, she developed her experience as Senior Tutor leading Personal Academic Tutors and teaching in language and linguistics, working with large international cohorts. She specialises in group peer review as a vehicle for formative assessment, with expertise in working with international students and at scale.

References

Centre for Higher Education Practice [CHEP] (2025) Advancing Assessment at the University of Southampton. Available at: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/chep/advancing-assessment.page (Accessed: 1 February 2025).

Firth, M., Ball-Smith, J., Burgess, T., Chaffer, C., Finn, G., Guy, M., Hansen, J., Havemann, L., et al. (2023) Optionality in Assessment: a cross institutional exploration of the feasibility, practicality and utility of student choices in assessment in UK higher education. Quality Assurance Agency. Available at: https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/members/final-report-28th-oct-report-a-summary-of-the-project.pdf?sfvrsn=2961b181_6 (Accessed: 1 February 2025).

Hughes, C. (2023) ‘Pandemic pedagogy: preparedness in uncertain times’, in E. Sengupta (ed) Innovations in Higher Education Teaching and Learning; no. 49. Leeds: Emerald Publishing Limited, pp.91-105.

McIntosh, E., and May, H. (2025) The 3 C’s: A Model for Co-creation of Student Success in Higher Education, in M.G. Jamil, C. O'Connor, and F. Shelton (eds) Co-Creation for Academic Enhancement in Higher Education. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-66316-1_2

Neves, J., Freeman, J., Stephenson, R., and Sotiropoulou, P. (2024) Student Academic Experience Survey 2024. Higher Education Policy Institute. Available at: https://www.hepi.ac.uk/2024/06/13/student-academic-experience-survey-2024/ (Accessed: 1 February 2025).

TILT Higher Ed (2025) The Transparency in Learning and Teaching Project. Available at: https://www.tilthighered.com/ (Accessed: 1 May 2025).

Walker, S. (2025) Trends in assessment in higher education: considerations for policy and practice JISC. Available at: https://repository.jisc.ac.uk/9887/1/trends-in-assessment-report.pdf (Accessed: 28 January 2025).

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Published

30-09-2025

How to Cite

Hughes, C., Walker, S., Moore, B., Albary, S., Doyle, D., Squire, L., & Wallington, A. (2025). Advancing Assessment in Co-design with Students: An evidence informed approach to enhancing practice. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (37). https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi37.1774

Issue

No. 37 (2025): Special Edition, ALDinHE Conference Proceedings and Reflections

Section

Conference Proceedings

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