Assessment and feedback in higher education reimagined: using programmatic assessment to transform higher education

Abstract

ABSTRACT We argue that assessment and feedback practices in higher education need to be transformed to better address three purposes: promoting learning, assuring assessment rigour, and communicating students’ employability. To address shortcomings in the current assessment and feedback culture, we propose programmatic assessment (PA), a new approach to assessment developed initially in medical education and now applied to a range of other professional fields. We outline eight recommendations that synthesise the key principles underpinning PA. Then, drawing on experience with PA in various professional fields in the Netherlands, we describe and illustrate four action steps for programme teams to take to implement programmatic assessment. We highlight implications of such a shift for leaders and professional services staff before concluding that PA can transform higher education by creating a more productive culture of assessment and feedback.