Assessment - Guide to Teaching Computer Science: An Activity-Based Approach - page 183

Self-Assessment In self-assessment students assess their own work. In the last years,
as part of conceiving assessment and reflection as learning tools, self-assessment is
commonly integrated in learning scenarios. Self-assessment is applied by CS stud-
ies as well. For example, based on Bloom's revised taxonomy, Alaoutinen ( 2010 )
evaluated a new taxonomy for self-assessment scale, and examined factors that
affect assessment accuracy and course performance. The study showed that students
can locate their level of knowledge (i.e., to assess) well along the taxonomy-based
scale and that the scale fits well engineering students' learning style. The study
pointed that advanced students assess themselves more accurately than novices,
and that reflective students are better in programming. Those results can encourage
educator to use self-assessment as fitting both for reflection and improvement of
students' knowledge and professional skills.
Peer-Assessment In peer-assessment students' work is assessed by other students of
equal status. Peer-assessment can be done in conjunction with self-assessment. Stu-
dents reflect on their own efforts, and extend and enrich this reflection by compar-
ing their own feedback with their peers' assessment. Peer assessment is a powerful
meta-cognitive tool, it engages students in the learning process and develops their
ability to reflect on and critically evaluate their learning and skills development (Li
2011 , collection of related publication 1 ). In CS education, peer-assessment in the
classroom is explored by Turner et al. ( 2011 ), and Sitthiworachart and Joy ( 2004 )
discuss benefits of peer assessment in the context of undergraduate courses.
Similar to the use of other pedagogical tools, the assessment methods employed
in any pedagogical setting should be varied. In this spirit, we deliver the message
that learners' assessment should not be necessarily addressed in isolation in the
MTCS course and recommend to integrate activities and discussions about assess-
ment along the MTCS course in different opportunities when other topics are at the
focus of the discussion, for example, research in CS education (Chap. 4), learners'
alternative conceptions (Chap. 6), lab-based teaching (Chap. 8), types of questions
(Chap. 9), and teaching planning (Chap. 11).
For example, Activity 45 presented in Sect. 6.3 is about learners' alterative con-
ceptions as well as about the assessment of a learner's answer in a written exam; in
Chap. 7, we discuss project-based learning and mentoring process of software project
development. The theme of assessment can be discussed with respect to different
approaches towards project evaluation. Finally, we mention Chap. 9 that presented
types of questions, which also elevate relevant themes related to learners' assessment.
The following topics are addressed in the chapter: tests, project assessment, and
portfolio in CS education. We end by addressing the assessment of students enrolled
in the MTCS course. These topics enable to deliver the following principles of as-
sessment in the context of CS education:
1 Melbourne university, student peer review. http://peerreview.cis.unimelb.edu.au/resources3/pub-
lications/