Article by Dr Christopher Wiley published in The International Journal of Assessment and Evaluation

Dr Christopher Wiley‘s article ‘Divided by a Common Language? Evaluating Students’ Understanding of the Vocabulary of Assessment and Feedback at a Single UK Higher Education Institution’ has been published in the May 2014 issue of The International Journal of Assessment and Evaluation.

Based on educational research conducted during his time at City University London, Dr Wiley’s article represents the published version of his paper delivered at the Nineteenth International Conference on Learning, Institute of Education, London on 16 August 2012 (see here for details).

Drawing on a series of interviews and consultations, the article reviews students’ understanding of the vocabulary of assessment and feedback in order to establish the extent to which it aligns with the sense intended by academic institutions in using this terminology. Dr Wiley identifies a series of recommendations for future enhancements to assessment and feedback practices to relieve the present disjunctures between university staff and students.

The journal issue may be viewed here: http://ijlae.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.251/prod.42

The link from which to order to article is as follows: http://ijlae.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.251/prod.43

Bibliographic citation

Wiley, Christopher. ‘Divided by a Common Language? Evaluating Students’ Understanding of the Vocabulary of Assessment and Feedback at a Single UK Higher Education Institution’, The International Journal of Assessment and Evaluation, Vol. 20, No. 3 (May 2014), pp. 1–11.

Full text

The full text of the article is available for free download via City Research Online: http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/3235/

Dr Christopher Wiley presents conference paper on standardized module evaluation at The Hatton, London

Dr Christopher Wiley delivered a paper on standardized module evaluation, teaching enhancement, and the recognition of teaching excellence at the Sixth Annual ‘Learning at City’ Conference on 4 June 2014.

Hosted by City University London and with the theme of ‘Students as Partners in Learning?’, this year the conference was held at The Hatton, Farringdon – its first time at an external venue.

Dr Wiley’s paper, entitled ‘Standardized Module Evaluation for Teaching Excellence and Enhancement: Views of Students at City University London’, followed an earlier presentation on the same topic at the 17th Annual SEDA Conference in 2012.

Based on research conducted last year via paper-based questionnaires completed by Student Representatives, Dr Wiley’s talk was given to an audience of some 30 staff drawn from City University and other HE institutions across England.

At the conference, Dr Wiley also presented an updated version of his poster, ‘The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme: Paths to Success’, originally shown at the inaugural Surrey ExciTeS Symposium in January 2014.

The full programme for the day may be viewed here: http://city-university-london.co.uk/t/EMO-2IBW5-7UH3CZ-13O24O-1/c.aspx

Dr Christopher Wiley delivers workshop presentation on electronic voting systems at the Universities of Hull and Durham

Dr Christopher Wiley delivered a revised and updated version of his presentation ‘Enhancing Instructional Interactivity through Electronic Voting Systems: Advanced Features and Innovative Pedagogies’ at a ‘Lunch and Learn’ session organized by Learning Enhancement & Academic Practice (LEAP) at the University of Hull on 12 March 2014.

Dr Wiley showcased a variety of different applications taken from his own teaching to illustrate the wide range of possibilities offered by electronic voting systems, as well as discussing the pedagogy underpinning the practice with reference to key academic studies. Co-presenter Conor Dumigan from Turning Technologies then provided a demonstration of how to create many different types of voting slides using the software, drawing on approaches including peer instruction, positive reinforcement, and game-based learning.

The 90-minute session was attended by over 40 staff from across the University, some of whom were entirely new to electronic voting systems.

Update: On 3 April 2014, Dr Wiley reprised his presentation in a two-hour lunchtime workshop at Durham University’s Palatine Centre, again speaking alongside Conor Dumigan. Some 20 staff from across the University were in attendance, including senior Faculty academics, education lecturers, learning technologists, and staff trainers.

Dr Christopher Wiley is featured on the BETT Show 2014 Blog

Dr Christopher Wiley has been featured on the BETT Show 2014 Blog in an post entitled ‘How Hand-Held Electronic Voting Systems Add A New Dynamic To Lectures’, which profiles his work using EVS as a University lecturer in the arts and humanities.

One of the major annual international trade shows for educational technology, BETT (formerly the British Educational Training and Technology Show) celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Its 2014 event is being held on 22-25 January at ExCeL London.

The full blog post on Dr Wiley may be read here: http://www.bettshow.com/page.cfm/action=library/libID=12/libEntryID=47

Dr Christopher Wiley organizes Learning and Teaching Day at the University of Surrey

Dr Christopher Wiley convened a one-day Learning and Teaching Symposium, themed around ‘Enhancing Assessment and Feedback’, for academic staff across the School of Arts at the University of Surrey on 16 January 2014.

The event comprised three sessions by invited speakers, poster presentations, and two discussion workshops facilitated by Dr Wiley, one focussing on Grade Descriptors and the other on reviewing current Feedback practices in the School (pictured). Also included as part of the Symposium was a dedicated session for Associate Tutors on Assessment and Feedback, again led by Dr Wiley.

The Symposium was attended by over thirty academics and several teaching-related staff from across the School of Arts (Music, Sound Recording, Dance, Film, Theatre, and the Guildford School of Acting) as well as e-Learning and Library & Learning Support Services.

Dr Christopher Wiley gives workshop on electronic voting systems at inaugural University of Surrey Teaching Symposium

Dr Christopher Wiley delivered a workshop on Turning Technologies electronic voting systems at the inaugural Surrey ExciTeS (Excellence in Teaching Symposium) event held at the University of Surrey on 8 January 2014.

Entitled ‘Enhancing Instructional Interactivity through Electronic Voting Systems: Advanced Features and Innovative Pedagogies’, the workshop was one of 36 parallel sessions, and was attended by some 30 academic staff from across the University.

In the course of the workshop, Dr Wiley presented a series of innovative applications of electronic voting systems drawn from his teaching in musicology, utilizing advanced functions such as leaderboards, demographic comparison, and moment-to-moment response in addition to the standard right-or-wrong multiple choice question.

Dr Wiley also presented a poster, ‘The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme: Paths to Success’, which provided background on The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme, reflected on his successful application in 2013, and offered some general tips on applying for teaching awards in Higher Education.

The full programme for the Surrey ExciTeS 2014 Symposium may be found here: http://www.surrey.ac.uk/dhe/news_and_events/events/Surrey%20ExciTeS%202014%20Programme.pdf

Dr Christopher Wiley addresses Turning Technologies User Conference, Dublin

Dr Christopher Wiley presented the latest version of his paper ‘Using Electronic Voting Systems in the Arts and Humanities’ at the Turning Technologies User Conference held at Trinity College Dublin on 4 November 2013.

This follows appearances earlier in the year in Germany and Crete (and, last year, in Denmark) in his capacity as a Distinguished Educator with Turning Technologies.

Dr Christopher Wiley attends National Teaching Fellowship Award Ceremony

Dr Christopher Wiley was one of 55 award winners honoured at the 2013 National Teaching Fellowship Award Ceremony, held at Middle Temple Hall, London on 9 October 2013. Dr Wiley represented both his current and former institutions, the University of Surrey and City University London, respectively.

Run by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW), and the Department for Employment and Learning in Northern Ireland (DELNI), the National Teaching Fellowship Scheme recognizes individual excellence in learning and teaching in Higher Education.

Individuals are nominated for the Scheme every year by some 350 eligible higher and further education institutions across England, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Successful nominees receive an award of £10,000 to enable their continuing professional development in learning and teaching.

Dr Wiley is pictured below receiving his award from Professor Sir Robert Burgess, Chair of the HEA Board, during the Ceremony. The announcement that Dr Wiley had been awarded a National Teaching Fellowship was made in June 2013.

Undergraduate Music Programme directed by Dr Christopher Wiley is top in the UK for student satisfaction in 2013

City University London’s BMus Music programme has been ranked as top in the UK with 100% student satisfaction in the 2013 National Student Survey (NSS), voted by the students themselves.

Dr Christopher Wiley assumed the position of BMus Programme Director in 2009, following a year when student satisfaction – as determined by the final question of the NSS, ‘Overall, I am satisfied with the quality of the course‘ – was at just 31%. Under his leadership, student satisfaction has steadily increased to 62% (2009), 68% (2010), and to 81% last year.

Other highlights of the programme’s 2013 survey results included responses to the questions ‘Staff are good at explaining things’ and ‘Staff have made the subject interesting’ (both 100%); ‘Staff are enthusiastic about what they are teaching’, ‘The course is intellectually stimulating’, and ‘I have been able to contact staff when I needed to’ (all 97%); and six other scores in the 90s.

Launched in 2005, the NSS is an annual national survey of final-year undergraduate students, conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), and provides the standard measure of student satisfaction used in a number of major league tables. The full results of the 2013 National Student Survey are available from HEFCE’s website.

The University’s statement on its 2013 student satisfaction scores acknowledged Music’s top position in the UK.

Dr Christopher Wiley writes for The Conversation UK

Dr Christopher Wiley has contributed an article to The Conversation UK, reflecting on aspects of Stephen Fry’s open letter on Russia’s controversial new anti-gay laws (which called for a ban on the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi) from his own perspective as musicologist, scholar, and teacher.

One claim that Fry made in his letter about the potential consequences of exploring Tchaikovsky’s sexuality and its relationship to his life and work under Russia’s controversial new legislation prompted Dr Wiley to reconsider elements of his own research on musical biography, not just on Tchaikovsky but also on Britten and Ethel Smyth.

Published on 12 August 2013 shortly after Fry’s letter went viral, Dr Wiley’s article, ‘Academics should stand with Fry against anti-gay Russia’, broke new ground for The Conversation UK for its content. It soon received thousands of views, helped in part by a mention by Fry himself on Twitter three days after it originally appeared.

The Conversation UK is an independent news and commentary website offering in-depth analysis, research, news, and ideas from academics and researchers, and has received over 300,000 visitors since its launch three months ago. Modelled on its successful Australian counterpart, its founding partners comprise 13 UK universities including City University London and the University of Surrey.

Dr Christopher Wiley facilitates workshop on electronic voting systems at ICICTE 2013, Crete

Dr Christopher Wiley facilitated a workshop on electronic voting systems at the International Conference on Information Communication Technologies in Education (ICICTE) in Chania, Crete on 5 July 2013.

Dr Wiley’s presentation, entitled ‘Increasing Instructional Interactivity with Turning Technologies Response Technology’, was chaired and moderated by Jay Carpenter, UK Territory Manager from Turning Technologies.

Highlights of Dr Wiley’s presentation included findings from his research into student engagement with electronic voting systems, aspects of his own teaching in musical theatre and pop music, and even a dodecaphonic piece improvised on an iPad piano app.

Last year, Dr Wiley became the first ever person from the arts and humanities appointed to Turning Technologies’ global Distinguished Educator programme (see here).

The day’s programme for the conference may be accessed at the following link: http://www.icicte.org/ICICTE13Programme3.htm

A review of the conference by Olivia Fox may be found here: http://blogs.city.ac.uk/educationalvignettes/2013/08/01/review-of-icicte-technology-innovations-conference/

Dr Christopher Wiley is awarded prestigious National Teaching Fellowship

Dr Christopher Wiley was among the 55 UK higher and further education staff awarded a 2013 National Teaching Fellowship by the Higher Education Academy. As the highest national award in learning and teaching in Higher Education, there are fewer than 600 National Teaching Fellows across the whole of the UK sector.

The Fellows were chosen from nominations submitted by some 350 eligible higher and further education institutions across England, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Submissions were assessed against three criteria: individual excellence, raising the profile of excellence, and developing excellence. Successful Fellows receive an award of £10,000, to support their professional development in teaching and learning.

The names of the successful 2013 National Teaching Fellows were announced on 27 June, and they will officially receive their awards at a ceremony due to take place in London on Wednesday 9 October.

Further information

Dr Wiley’s profile at the Higher Education Academy website: http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/contacts/detail/ntfs/2013/Wiley_Christopher_profile_ntfs_2013

News item by City University London: http://www.city.ac.uk/news/2013/jun/two-city-staff-awarded-national-teaching-fellowships-for-2013

The Guardian article on the 2013 National Teaching Fellows: http://www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-hea-partner-zone/national-teaching-fellows-2013-hea

Dr Christopher Wiley becomes Learning Development Fellow at City University London

At the Fifth Annual ‘Learning at City’ Conference hosted by City University London on 6 June 2013, Dr Christopher Wiley was one of seven members of institutional staff invited to become a Learning Development Fellow.

From the Learning Development Centre website, Learning Development Fellows are ‘staff who have demonstrated a prolonged commitment to educational development at City University London and who continue to play an active role in promoting a culture of enhancing the student experience through raising the profile of learning and teaching’ (see here).

Dr Wiley joins a cohort of some 60 staff who, amongst other things, form an important network within the institution, provide a point of liaison between their department and the Learning Development Centre, influence and give feedback on development and strategy, mentor junior staff, and advocate teaching excellence and innovation.

Dr Christopher Wiley addresses Turning Technologies User Conference 2013, Germany

Dr Christopher Wiley reprised his paper ‘Using Electronic Voting Systems in the Arts and Humanities’ at the most recent Turning Technologies User Conference in Karlsruhe, Germany on 3 June 2013.

Jointly hosted by the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, the Conference attracted a range of delegates from countries including the UK, US, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, France, Finland, Lebanon, and South Korea. The full Conference Agenda may be viewed here.

Dr Wiley’s paper was originally delivered last year at Aarhus University, Denmark (see here) and was revised for presentation in Karlsruhe, as part of the second Turning Technologies Conference to be held in Continental Europe.

An advocate of electronic voting systems for the past five years, in 2012 Dr Wiley became the first person from the arts and humanities to join Turning Technologies’ Distinguished Educator programme (see here).

Update: as a result of this conference appearance, Dr Wiley was featured on ‘Turn to Your Neighbour: The Official Peer Instruction Blog’, which is among the top 100 most read educational blogs globally.

Written by the blog’s founder, Dr Julie Schell (who described it on Twitter as her ‘funnest post to date’), the article on Dr Wiley may be read here: http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2013/06/10/3-easy-ways-to-use-clickers-and-peer-instruction-in-the-arts-and-humanities/

Update: A video of Dr Wiley’s complete presentation may be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yTPsAGW8fo

Dr Christopher Wiley presents ELESIG Webinar on BYOD, Mobile Technologies, and Social Media

Dr Christopher Wiley presented a lunchtime webinar hosted by ELESIG (Evaluation of Learners’ Experiences of e-learning Special Interest Group) on 24 April 2013. Entitled ‘BYOD, mobile technologies, and social media for learning’, the event was the first in the ELESIG Webinar Series 2013.

In the course of the webinar, Dr Wiley discussed various ways in which he had sought to respond to students’ use of social media (including Facebook and Twitter) and their own mobile technologies in his teaching, in order to engage the students in e-learning and to enable them to contribute online as well as in person.

Drawing on evidence received from both students and staff in recent years, Dr Wiley discussed the merits and shortcomings of using these innovative technologies to facilitate learning at the tertiary educational level, as well as its value in educating students in contemporary issues such as media literacy and management of their online identities.

With over 50 members of the ELESIG community attending online from across the nation, much lively and productive discussion was prompted throughout the one-hour webinar.
A webcast recording of the event may be accessed here: http://uni-of-nottingham.adobeconnect.com/p739d8j3xiw/

Dr Christopher Wiley is appointed Senior Lecturer and Director of Learning and Teaching in the School of Arts at the University of Surrey

Dr Christopher Wiley has been appointed Senior Lecturer and Director of Learning and Teaching in the School of Arts at the University of Surrey. The University’s School of Arts comprises the subject areas of Music and Sound Recording, Dance, Film, and Theatre, as well as the Digital World Research Centre, the Lewis Elton Gallery, and the acclaimed Guildford School of Acting (GSA).

Dr Wiley commences his new position in September 2013. His academic profile on the University of Surrey website may be viewed here: http://www.surrey.ac.uk/schoolofarts/people/complete_staff_list/christopher_wiley

Dr Christopher Wiley curates major Musical Theatre concert

A major Musical Theatre concert featuring students of City University London, curated by Dr Christopher Wiley, was presented in the University’s Performance Space on Tuesday 19 March 2013, to tie in with the ‘Musical Theatre’ module currently being delivered by Dr Wiley on the BMus programme.

The concert’s broad range of solo numbers included ‘The Man I Love’ (Lady Be Good), ‘If I Loved You’ (Carousel), ‘Adelaide’s Lament’ (Guys and Dolls), ‘So Long, Dearie’ (Hello, Dolly!), ‘Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again’ (The Phantom of the Opera), ‘Why, God, Why?’ (Miss Saigon), ‘There’s a Fine, Fine Line’ (Avenue Q), ‘Falling Slowly’ (Once), and ‘Left Behind’ (Spring Awakening).

Also featured were the chorus numbers ‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’ and ‘One Day More’ (Les Misérables) performed by the City University Musical Theatre Chorus, a staged version of ‘What is this Feeling’ (Wicked), and a set by the City University Big Band that included ‘They Can’t Take That Away from Me’ (Shall We Dance), ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ (The Wizard of Oz), and ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ (We Will Rock You).

Some 60 performers were involved in the concert, which attracted a sell-out audience. Other highlights included the fully staged chorus ‘Another Op’nin’, Another Show’ (Kiss Me, Kate; shown above in rehearsal) to start the event, and a choreographed ‘Cell Block Tango’ (Chicago) featuring the City Block Tango Dancers.

For further information, please see: http://www.city.ac.uk/events/2013/march/a-night-at-the-musicals

Update: A promotional video about the concert and its associated academic module, featuring interviews from the students as well as footage of lectures and of the performance itself, was released in June 2013 and may be viewed here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CC01cbDvaw0

Dr Christopher Wiley and recent student Dionysios Kyropoulos featured in Independent article on music degrees and associated career opportunities

An article published today (22 November) in the Creative Arts supplement of The Independent newspaper features quotations from Dr Christopher Wiley as well as a profile of his recently-graduated BMus student Dionysios Kyropoulos.

In ‘Notes on working in music’, by journalist David Crookes, Chris tops a list of UK academics quoted in the article, who between them explain that a music degree can open up a wealth of career opportunities for the aspiring student. Chris notes that ‘There certainly is more to being a successful musician than simply playing an instrument’, before outlining some of the many career-enhancing benefits of studying music at university.

Dionysios, whose dissertation on historically-informed gestures in Baroque vocal performance was prepared under Chris’s supervision, explains how his passion for classical singing and opera led him to the UK (from Greece) and to City University London, in order to benefit from solid academic foundations for his studies in tandem with high-quality singing training.

Click here to read the full article in scanned form, or here to read the article at The Independent website.

Dr Christopher Wiley addresses SEDA Annual Conference at Aston University, Birmingham

Dr Christopher Wiley addressed the 17th Annual Conference of the Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA), ‘Excellence in Teaching: recognising, enhancing, evaluating and achieving impact’, held at Aston Business School Conference Centre, Aston University, Birmingham on 15-16 November 2012.

His presentation, entitled ‘Standardized Module Evaluation for Teaching Excellence and Enhancement: Views of Students and Staff at a Single UK Higher Education Institution’, discussed the principles underpinning the standardization of module evaluation and its advantages and disadvantages.

Drawing on the standardized module evaluation implemented across City University London last year and some of the more localized processes it replaced, as well as the views of students and staff interviewed as part of his research, Dr Wiley also considered other measures by which teaching excellence might instead be recognized such as student-led teaching award schemes.

In the course of the workshop session, Dr Wiley facilitated a lively discussion on the relative merits and drawbacks of standardized module evaluation, exploring the processes currently implemented at different institutions, sharing best practices, and working towards action planning for the future.

Dr Christopher Wiley to join Turning Technologies’ Distinguished Educator Programme

Dr Christopher Wiley, Senior Lecturer in Music at City University London, has been appointed as a Distinguished Educator by Turning Technologies, global leader in voting, polling, and assessment systems used by schools, universities, and corporations.

In this role, Dr Wiley will be responsible for sharing with the company’s growing community of users in the UK and Europe best practice, pedagogical applications, and his own experience as a music lecturer using Turning Technologies’ response technology.

Dr Wiley, who joins the Programme as the first Distinguished Educator to be appointed from the Arts and Humanities, will sit alongside world-renowned educators such as Dr Eric Mazur, Harvard Professor and creator of the highly successful peer instruction method of teaching, as well as other HE professionals from across the world.

Commenting on his appointment, Dr Chris Wiley said, “I have been using Turning Technologies’ electronic voting systems since 2008 and was awarded a University Prize for Teaching Innovation the following year for my pioneering work in this area. I was invited to join the Distinguished Educator programme following my presentation at Turning Technologies’ User Conference at Aarhus University, Denmark in June 2012.

“As a role centred on the provision of academic expertise for a commercial enterprise, the Distinguished Educator position also embodies City University London’s unique focus on ‘academic excellence for business and the professions’.”

Read the full news release here:

http://www.prlog.org/12005628-dr-christopher-wileysenior-lecturer-in-music-at-city-university-londonto-join-turning-technologies.html

http://www.cisionwire.com/livewire-pr/r/dr-christopher-wiley–senior-lecturer-in-music-at-city-university-london–to-join-turning-technologi,c9322676

http://www.24dash.com/news/education/2012-11-01-Dr-Christopher-Wiley-Senior-Lecturer-in-Music-at-City-University-London-to-join-Turning-Technologies-Distinguished-Educator-Programme

Dr Christopher Wiley delivers paper at International Conference on Learning, Institute of Education, London

Dr Christopher Wiley presented his paper ‘Divided by a Common Language? Evaluating Students’ Understanding of the Vocabulary of Assessment and Feedback at a Single UK Higher Education Institution’ at the Nineteenth International Conference on Learning, Institute of Education, University of London on 16 August 2012.

Dr Wiley’s paper, which discussed the changing context of Higher Education in the UK and its implications for assessment and feedback, fell on the same day that students across the country received their A-level results and found out whether they had been accepted to their chosen university degree course.

Presenting some of the findings of interviews conducted with students across City University London in the past academic year (previously discussed here), Dr Wiley questioned many aspects of current assessment and feedback processes, enriching his talk with reference to innovations implemented this year in his own academic practice.

The Nineteenth International Conference on Learning welcomed some 600 delegates from 40 countries across three days.

Dr Christopher Wiley addresses Turning Technologies User Conference 2012, Denmark

Dr Christopher Wiley addressed the Turning Technologies User Conference 2012 at Aarhus University, Denmark on 19 June 2012, delivering a presentation entitled ‘Using Electronic Voting Systems in the Arts and Humanities’.

In the first Turning Technologies Conference to be held in Continental Europe, Dr Wiley argued for the largely unrecognized potential for electronic voting systems to enhance teaching in disciplines other than the sciences and business, drawing on his use of the technology as a music lecturer as well as his original research.

Dr Wiley was one of six speakers to lead parallel breakout sessions during the conference, selected from over 50 proposals received. Participating delegates were drawn from countries including the US, Denmark, the UK, France, Germany, Holland, and Spain.

The full programme for the event may be downloaded here.

Dr Christopher Wiley receives Student Voice Award at City University London

For the second year in a row, Dr Christopher Wiley has received a prestigious Student Voice Award, presented by City University London. He thus becomes only the second person in the history of the Award to have been a recipient in two consecutive years.

Chris was one of twelve members of academic and professional staff across the University to win the prize. Competition was, as ever, extremely fierce with a total of over 200 nominees.

The scheme is intended to reward ‘exceptional teaching practice and outstanding support services’, and to recognize excellent contribution to the student experience. Nominations are made by the students themselves and winners are decided by the University’s Students’ Union.

See this post for news of Chris’s being awarded a University Student Voice Award in 2011. Further information about the Student Voice Awards 2012 is available here.

Chris was separately awarded a School of Arts Learning & Teaching Recognition Prize for his excellent module evaluation feedback in the 2011-12 academic year.

The prizes were announced and formally presentated at a prize-giving ceremony at the close of the Fourth Annual ‘Learning at City’ Conference on 13 June 2012 (see picture above).

Dr Christopher Wiley presents paper on assessment and feedback at ‘Learning at City’ Conference

Dr Christopher Wiley presented a paper on assessment and feedback at City University London’s Fourth Annual ‘Learning at City’ Conference on Wednesday 13 June 2012.

Entitled ‘Divided by a Common Language? Evaluating Students’ Understanding of the Vocabulary of Assessment and Feedback at City University London’, Dr Wiley’s paper asked whether certain key terms used routinely in assessment and feedback practice might hold a subtly different meaning for students than for staff, presenting evidence from a series of consultations with students from across the University.

A video of Dr Wiley’s presentation may be viewed from YouTube here. The full programme is available here.

Dr Christopher Wiley is guest speaker in inaugural University debate

Dr Christopher Wiley was chosen as one of two guest speakers to participate in the first in a series of cross-institutional debates on matters of teaching and learning at City University London (see review here).

Hosted by the University’s Learning Development Centre and attended by an audience of around 60 staff and students from the University, the inaugural debate considered the provocative motion ‘Assessment Practice in Higher Education relies largely on a limited range of methods that are not always fit for purpose‘.

Supporting the motion was Professor Nigel Duncan (City Law School), the University’s academic lead for assessment and a distinguished law lecturer. Co-chairing the event were Patrick Baughan and Neal Sumner, both Senior Lecturers in the Learning Development Centre.

Both Professor Duncan and Dr Wiley were given an initial 10 minutes to address the audience followed by brief opportunity for rebuttal of one another’s arguments, before discussion was opened up to the floor.

In the final vote, the debate motion was supported by 70%-30%. Nonetheless, Dr Wiley was congratulated not only for having admirably risen to the challenging task of opposing such a motion but for having evidently swayed a significant minority with the persuasiveness of his arguments.

The debate opened the annual Learning Development Centre Showcase event, which this year was on the subject of ‘Student Engagement’, and at which Dr Wiley was also awarded a Best Learning Spaces Design prize for his design of a hypothetical lecture room layout.

Dr Christopher Wiley wins University Student Voice Award at City University London

Dr Christopher Wiley has won a prestigious Student Voice Award (so named because all nominations are made by the students themselves) at City University London.

Staving off fierce competition from hundreds of nominees, Chris was one of 12 members of academic staff across the University to win the coveted £1,000 prize.

The Student Voice Award scheme is run by the University’s Students’ Union in conjunction with the Learning Development Centre, to acknowledge lecturers who have demonstrated great commitment to top-quality teaching, learning, and assessment over the past year, and who have made a positive impact on the student experience. Students are required to complete a one-page application by way of nominating a staff member.

Chris’s nomination was made primarily on the basis of excellence in dissertation supervision, together with quality and timeliness of feedback on written work.  The students also commended him for the ‘buzz’ they feel after his lectures, for his listening and communication skills, and for the support he has given to student activities both on and off campus.

Chris was formally presented with the award at the prize-giving ceremony with which the annual ‘Learning at City’ conference ended on 23 June 2011. Earlier that day, he had delivered a presentation at the same conference based on his research on institutional handbooks for postgraduate research students.