One of the founding principles underpinning the design of the StREAM student engagement analytics platform is to use data to get upstream of potential issues that could impact a student’s success at university. Ultimately, the determining factor in terms of success is the acquisition of academic credit through the passing of assessments.

Insights from student engagement data can help identify possible risks to a student being able to submit work for assessment in sufficient time to enable support to be offered, accepted and implemented by the student. Addressing issues early has the potential to increase the chances of a student successfully submitting and passing their assessment and, eventually, achieving their degree, thereby contributing to the Office for Student’s registration condition B3 for universities in England: ‘The provider must deliver successful outcomes for all of its students’.

Conversely, without successfully passing their summative assessments, students are unable to acquire the academic credit they need to be awarded their qualification.

Why include assessment data in StREAM 

The strategic imperative behind the granular views of assessment activity within StREAM are clearly expressed by Caroline Reid, Associate Dean (Student Experience) in the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences at the University of Bedfordshire:

Having visibility of assessment information within StREAM helps our tutors and students to see how their engagement activity is impacting their grades. We know that students are driven by assessment – for the University of Bedfordshire, the ability to triangulate this information provides a deeper level of conversations with our students and helps them to better understand how their engagement affects their outcomes and to take action accordingly.

Research with our clients has shown a direct correlation between engagement and attainment. For example, research at University College Birmingham predicted that moving up an engagement category (e.g. from good to high) will increase average assignment mark by 7 marks. However, it should be noted that the extent of the impact on attainment resulting from high or increased engagement is not always guaranteed, nor is it easily quantifiable. There can be situations where students are highly engaged, but where this engagement activity is not translating into academic success. Or perhaps students are not learning strategically e.g. logging into their VLE but not actually going on to engage effectively in the learning activities. That’s why we are very careful not to predict student outcomes based on their engagement behaviours but rather provide insights to staff and students that indicate where further advice and guidance could be beneficial. 

The value of assessment data 

Inclusion of assessment data helps to identify where potential situations that could negatively impact degree outcomes may be occurring for a student. Triangulating assessment outcomes with engagement activity and the student’s learning journey map can help tutors to determine whether improvements to how a student is engaging with their learning could reap benefits. Having identified potential issues, tutors can then use their academic expertise and contextual knowledge to signpost a student to relevant sources of help and support, effectively managed within the StREAM end-to-end interventions lifecycle.

Assessment item information is more valuable than module grades 

For the data within StREAM to be actionable and to meaningfully affect student outcomes, it ideally needs to be available in near real-time. From an assessment perspective, this means including provisional assessment item grades when they first become available rather than ratified module grades. Once a module grade is available, it is too late for the student to do anything to improve that grade.

Students are used to receiving provisional grades for summative assessment within their VLE. They know that assessment grades received at the end of the marking period still have to be officially ratified by the relevant exam board for them to receive the requisite academic credit. If necessary, information to this effect can be included within StREAM to clarify the provisional nature of the near real-time grades that are visualized.

Information on non-submission is more important still

There is a level of assessment information that is more important than even provisional assessment item grades for summative work, namely information on submission or non-submission. Surfacing a feed directly from within the VLE that shows whether a student has submitted or not – irrespective of the quality of the submission – is the most actionable information on assessment possible.

At the point of non-submission, the university regulatory and policy framework can still offer opportunities to mitigate against a fail grade for the assessment item. In an ideal world, students would know about the university provisions relating to extensions and extenuating circumstances, but the likelihood is that staff may need to initiate those conversations with students.

Why submitting and failing could be better than simply taking the resit 

Where students don’t submit by the deadline, a university’s regulatory framework may permit late submissions for a period of time with the highest possible grade capped at a bare pass as the penalty for late submission.

From a student success and continuation perspective, supporting students to submit late could be preferable to a complete non-submission for the following reasons:

• Firstly, if the student does submit and pass, then the assignment itself is complete and out of the way. The grade would be capped, but it is likely to be the case that the maximum grade for a late submission is the same as a maximum grade for a resit without extenuating circumstances. One less assignment for the resit period.

• Secondly, if the student submits late and fails, they should still receive feedback from the marking tutor on why they have failed. Tutors can then work with the student to help them maximise the value to be obtained from the feedback and use it to inform the resubmission.

• Thirdly, a student who misses a deadline for reasons that would justify a claim for extenuating circumstances may also have other assignment deadlines that would be affected by the same issue. Supporting the student to receive the right support for those other assignments is also a more preferable and positive outcome than the student not submitting and having to wait for a resit opportunity – possibly with other assignments all due within a few days of each other.

Assessment and feedback really does matter 

At the end of the day, all these considerations are about finding the right way to support each individual student and agreeing a course of action that is appropriate to the circumstances that each student finds themself in. It’s almost like a process of elimination – working through the options until the right approach presents itself.

From an extension through to a resit, the focus of academic support for assignments is about supporting students to achieve their potential without their assignment grades being unduly impacted. In practice, this means working to achieve the most favourable outcome – supporting first sit submission with an extension if necessary, maximizing opportunities to receive academic feedback to support a resit if required, or implementing extenuating circumstances provisions as appropriate.

Visualising all this information in near real-time within StREAM, where students can also see the same information as their tutors, can certainly help create a productive and positive framing within which any conversations and supportive action can occur.

To find out more about how StREAM supports academic success, why not arrange a StREAM demonstration.