‘Assessment for social justice and supporting retention‘ seminar
Key words: compassion empathy trust humility boundaries love communication language non-verbal communication equity social justice kindness joy
After the seminar I reflected on the language I use during group, 1-2-1 tutorials and crits. Formative assessment comprises a large part of the student journey. Discussion with peers and tutors foregrounds that I am an influential presence, and that what I say has an impact on student experience. I aim to take an empathic approach to all my communication with students and colleagues. I think I do this naturally however, I must also consider self-care and self-awareness in this process. If I am feeling stressed or anxious for whatever reason (usually relating to my family life!) this will effect my ability to provide effective support to students.
Through this seminar I reflected on constructive alignment theory. If students are to create their own learning, external factors must be considered when assessing, such as personal life, positionality and intersectionality, of myself and students.
Reflection on key questions pointed me towards my values and positionality. My experience as a bi-racial individual result in an intrinsic mindfulness of racial equality in life generally, and in teaching and learning processes however, through reading texts such as Friere’s ‘Pedagogy of the Oppressed’, I have become more aware of the wider issues of social justice and the ways in which (my) unconscious bias, white privilege, (my) wilful ignorance are a part of the British education system, including UAL policies and practice, that creates an attainment gap between white students and their black and brown, disadvantaged, underrepresented counterparts. I continue to consider how I can be part of reducing the attainment gap and improving student experience for underrepresented groups and individuals through my practice.
References: Compassionate assessment seminar Padlet. Available at https://artslondon.padlet.org/ccaldwell39/assessment-for-social-justice-and-supporting-retention-com2tiy6h9d1hnu6
Updated UAL assessment criteria is useful in that it is presented in a visual format that makes the information accessible. Available at https://canvas.arts.ac.uk/News/62339/new-assessment-criteria-now-live