Self, Peer and Teacher Assessments in Problem Based Learning: Are They in Agreements?

Abstract

In order to obtain a holistic view of students’ contribution, self-assessment and peer-assessment are often used in addition to teacher assessment to arrive at the overall course grade of a student in Problem Based Learning (PBL). However, the relevance of student-based assessment in deciding the final grade can be open to questions. Although the literature suggests student-based assessment is useful and appropriate for evaluating skills in PBL, students and teachers’ have different perceptions, leading to differing viewpoints in assessments. Also, the correlation between students assessment grades (self and peer) and teacher assessment has been inconclusive. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify differences and similarities between self-assessment, peer-assessment and teacher assessment scores. A group of students who were undergoing PBL were the participants for the study which was part of a larger quasi-experimental study. The scope of this study is limited to team-working skills that were assessed using self-report, peer-report and teacher's ratings. Students in both groups were asked to provide confidential assessment on their friends as well as of themseleves.The data analysis results indicate that students tend to give similar scores to selves and peers,which are much higher than what were given by their teacher. An association was also found between self and peer assessment scores but not between teacher's and students’ assessment scores. In conclusion, students differ from teachers in their assessment of team-working skills which could provide evidence supporting for the inclusion of students-based assessment scores in deciding the overall grade of a student.