Psychology Learning & Teaching
ISSN 1475-7257

CONTENTS [click on author's name for abstract and full text]

Stephen Newstead. Examining the Examiners: why are we so bad at assessing students?, pages 70-75 doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.70 VIEW FULL TEXT
Edward Edgerton & Jim McKechnie. Students’ views of group-based work and the issue of peer assessment, pages 76-81
Sue Palmer. Enquiry-based learning can maximise a student’s potential, pages 82-86
Christopher Pike. Exploring the Conceptual Space of LEGO: teaching and learning the psychology of creativity, pages 87-94
Paul Barber. Critical Analysis of Psychological Research: rationale and design for a proposed course for the undergraduate psychology curriculum, pages 95-101
Alison Hine, Sandra Gollin, Anita Ozols, Frank Hill & Michele Scoufis. Embedding Information Literacy in a University Subject through Collaborative Partnerships, pages 102-107
David Green. How Should We Best Train Clinical Psychology Supervisors?, pages 108-115
Lin Norton, Rebecca Clifford, Laurence Hopkins, Istra Toner & Bill (J.C.W) Norton. Helping Psychology Students Write Better essays, pages 116-126

REPORTS
Tanya Rogers. Supporting Open and Distance Learners with Computer Conferencing: potential benefits and barriers, pages 127-133
Siobhan MacAndrew. Essays are Not the Only Way: a case report on the benefits of authentic assessment, pages 134-139
Rachel Ashby & Christine Broughan. Factors Affecting Students’ Usage of Virtual Learning Environment, pages 140-141

BOOK REVIEWS, pages 142-163 doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.142 VIEW FULL TEXT

Students’ Views of Group-based Work and the Issue of Peer Assessment

EDWARD EDGERTON & JIM MCKECHNIE University of Paisley, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.76

This article evaluates the introduction of a ‘new’ form of assessment in a final year psychology undergraduate module. The assessment required students to work in groups (N = 3 or 4) to produce a conference-style poster that presented personality data collated from the whole class. The final grade for each student on this assessment reflected a group mark for the poster, a peer assessment mark from their group and their individual performance on a question and answer session on the poster. The evaluation focussed on (i) students perception of this piece of assessment, (ii) the relationship between different elements of this assessment and the module exam, and (iii) issues surrounding reciprocity in group work. The main findings suggested that generally students found the poster comparable to other forms of assessment they had experienced in terms of difficulty and effort required, and that on the whole they were positive about the assessment despite misgivings about group organisation and dynamics. In addition, the assessed elements of the poster did not correlate with performance on the exam, suggesting that they may relate to different skills. Finally, the results suggested that the measurement of reciprocity in peer assessment may be more complex where small groups are concerned.

Enquiry-based Learning Can Maximise a Student’s Potential

SUE PALMER Faculty of Education, University of Manchester, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.82

This article evaluates an innovative method of delivery and assessment in psychology, using enquiry-based learning as a method of delivery, and student-led seminars that are peerassessed as part of the assessment. Students’ grades in a first semester developmental psychology module were found to be significantly higher than a conventionally delivered and assessed module in the second semester. The results of this evaluation are discussed in terms of student benefit and feedback.

Exploring the Conceptual Space of LEGO: teaching and learning the psychology of creativity

CHRISTOPHER PIKE Canterbury Christ Church University College, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.87

This article reports on the use of the construction toy LEGO as an effective learning resource for undergraduate classes in the psychology of creativity. Students first attended a short series of lectures on aspects of creativity, including learner characteristics such as motivation and metacognition, and theoretical approaches to problem-finding and problem-solving including the Geneplore model and the metaphor of learning as navigation in a multidimensional conceptual space. This was followed by three sessions in which students explored the conceptual space of LEGO under each of three conditions: freeplay in session 1, constraints on process in session 2 (rules for assembly), and constraints on product in session 3 (set goals). Throughout this time, students were required to keep a ‘metacognitive diary’ of their experiences, and to reflect on their own learning processes within and across sessions. Evaluation was carried out by means of a post-activity questionnaire. The article reports on the kinds of structures produced under each set of constraints, patterns of student learning experiences, motivational changes, and student evaluations of the activity as a whole. It is suggested that, used in this way, LEGO provides a simple, highly enjoyable, yet effective medium for teaching, learning and research in the psychology of creativity.

Critical Analysis of Psychological Research: rationale and design for a proposed course for the undergraduate psychology curriculum

PAUL BARBER Birkbeck College, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.95

Critical thinking about psychological research appears seldom to be taught to an advanced level on UK psychology degrees, or to be allocated a substantial amount of learning/teaching time at any level. It is likely that students may graduate with an inaccurate and passive uncritical view of discipline knowledge unless the relevant skills needed to appraise that knowledge are acquired. A common assumption seems to be that this is implicitly recognised in traditional research methods teaching, and the skills are therefore emergent from conventional lectures, practicals and research projects. Since the manifold pressures on students and teachers combine to increase the reliance on secondary sources, the explicit provision of a course in critical thinking about research should be considered. It is argued that this is best offered at a relatively late stage in a psychology degree programme. Since psychology graduates are more likely to become research users than research producers, it is argued that skills training for critical analysis of research reports will be professionally advantageous. A framework for a critical analysis course is described to enable students to undertake a comprehensive critical appraisal of a research article. This is based on a long-established final-year course that treats critical analysis, of published research papers, as the vehicle for training students to treat the literature with more circumspection, and the respect it deserves.

Embedding Information Literacy in a University Subject through Collaborative Partnerships

ALISON HINE, SANDRA GOLLIN, ANITA OZOLS, FRANK HILL & MICHELE SCOUFIS University of Western Sydney, Australia

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.102

Curricula designed to develop tomorrow’s professionals recognise that information literacy will be developed and implemented to ever increasing degrees. The current challenge to tertiary education is to embed information literacy in authentic meaningful practice in academic tasks at all levels. An innovative and multifaceted approach to the development of information literacy has been implemented at an Australian tertiary institution. The approach which involved collaboration among the university’s academic teaching staff, professional developers, academic learning skills advisers and librarians aims to empower students from a variety of backgrounds to confidently utilise a range of information literacy strategies. Scaffolded academic tasks afforded students the opportunity of acquiring skills in information gathering, recognising relevance, critical thinking and reflection. The project contributed to the development of independent, confident, critical thinking students who were able to meaningfully evaluate and utilise information in a variety of contexts.

How Should We Best Train Clinical Psychology Supervisors? A Delphi Survey

DAVID GREEN & LOUISE DYE University of Leeds, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.108

Although clinical supervision plays a major part in the professional training of clinical psychologists, there are as yet no agreed guidelines for preparing supervisors for this key educational role. This article uses the Delphi approach to see whether an expert panel of UK clinical psychologists could come to a consensus on what the most suitable components of such a supervisor training programme might be.

Helping Psychology Students Write Better Essays

LIN NORTON, REBECCA CLIFFORD, LAURENCE HOPKINS, ISTRA TONER & BILL (J.C.W.) NORTON Liverpool Hope University College, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.116

This article reports on an intervention to help psychology students write better essays by using an Essay Feedback Checklist (EFC). A sample of first year and third year psychology students were asked to rate their own essays in terms of how confident they felt they had been in meeting the departmental assessment criteria. Tutors used the same rating scale when marking the essays and used any mismatches between their rating and that of the student to target their feedback. The aims of the study were to look at the effects of using the EFC in(i) writing an essay and (ii) clarifying written tutor feedback. Findings showed some mismatches between students and their tutors particularly in the third year. Students were mainly positive about the EFC, although some comments indicated that more help was needed. The implications of these findings are discussed in terms of an action research framework and student self-assessment.

Supporting Open and Distance Learners with Computer Conferencing: potential benefits and barriers

TANYA ROGERS & JOHN NELSON Open Learning Unit, Department of Information Studies, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.127

The aim of this article is to outline the issues surrounding online support for open and distance learners in a dual-mode department. In recent years with the acceptance of learning as a lifelong process, many UK universities have broadened their remit to embrace a larger and more diverse learner population. This cultural change in education policy has corresponded with rapid developments in educational technology. The Open Learning Unit (OLU), University of Wales, Aberystwyth, was established in 1993 specifically to develop open and distance learning degree schemes. It is directed by an educational philosophy of learner-centred, open and flexible learning. Central to this work is the implementation and maintenance of a learner support system, which includes the use of computer conferencing. Using over 600 distance learners from a Department of Information Studies as a case study, this article aims to outline the issue of support for open and distance learners, describe the benefits and barriers of computer conferencing as a support medium, and consider the potential of social cognition research to investigate lurking behaviour in online teaching and learning environments.

Essays are Not the Only Way: a case report on the benefits of authentic assessment

SIOBHAN B. G. MacANDREW & KATHERINE EDWARDS University of Abertay, Dundee, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.134

Authentic assessments resemble the tasks that graduates will be required to perform in the workplace. This report compares grades obtained for essays with those for two authentic assessments, namely, the presentation of a poster and the publication of an information pack. Implementation of authentic assessments requires carefully devised assessment criteria, cooperative staff, and students who have been coached on the requirements of style and content. The authentic assessments reported here are valid, reliable, fulfilling and capable of motivating students to achieve. The results are set in the context of marking workload, didactic benefits and student and lecturer job satisfaction. The data illustrate some of the difficulties encountered in ‘action research’ in the classroom.

Factors Affecting Students’ Usage of Virtual Learning Environments

RACHEL ASHBY & CHRISTINE BROUGHAN Department of Psychology, University of Coventry, United Kingdom

doi:10.2304/plat.2002.2.2.140

This report considers the factors that affect students’ usage of virtual learning environments (VLE). In particular it explores students’ reluctance to engage in the interactive components of the VLE that are essential elements to the learning process. A study at Coventry University found that many students felt embarrassed to use the on-line facilities. In order for students to use the VLE to its fullest potential, it is suggested that students should not simply be expected to embrace this new form of learning without suitable support and guidance from tutors.

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