Welcome to the Assessment Research Centre
The Centre focuses on improving assessment and reporting through a four-step process of research, publication, development and training. These provide the framework for strategic planning by the Centre and guide the Centre's core business as well as its link to the University's mission.
Research that leads to change, strategically affects change, or sets up the basis for change and improvement in assessment, forms the focus of the Centre's work.
The Centre focuses on research either in or using assessment. All activities and projects have a research focus and emphasise assessment or evaluation models based on assessment. The Centre's research program is its basic tool for educational change. Assessment research is regarded as a way of testing ideas, of checking the theoretical and practical nature of theories, new approaches and ideas.
Through publishing the research outcomes in a variety of media to cater for a wide variety of audiences, the Centre is able to disseminate its ideas and procedures to assess the change process.
The development strategies employed by the Centre translate research outcomes into materials that practitioners can evaluate and use. The end user is one who can judge the practicality of research outcomes and their application potential. This is the basis of the change and improvement practices. Therefore, the development of materials is also given priority in each project.
Each project at the development stage incorporates plans for a series of seminars, workshops, publications and other means of dissemination.
The Centre conducts a series of short course training programs in assessment research and related fields. Graduate supervision and teaching of award and non-award courses complements the Centre’s research program by having graduates actively participating in components of the Centre’s research agenda.