Educational Assessment

The Educational Assessment MA investigates the purposes and potential uses of formative and summative assessment and the relationship between the two. The course provides opportunities to review assessment of learning and assessment for learning, it develops students' understanding of principal concepts in educational testing and encourages critical engagement with policy development in educational assessment.

The programme provides students with the opportunity to develop an in-depth understanding of assessment issues, practices and policies both in the UK and internationally. They will join the only MA programme in London affiliated with the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors (CIEA), benefiting also from fastrack to chartered assessor status, on successful completion of the programme.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.

The programme consists of one core module (30 credits, and either three optional modules (90 credits) and a dissertation (60 credits), or a 30-credit report plus an additional optional module (credits).

Core module

There is just one core module for the MA Educational Assessment

• Assessment: Issues and Practice

Optional modules include

• Educational Testing
• Understanding Research
• Perspectives on International Reform of Curriculum and Assessment
• Investigating Research
• Curriculum Design and Development
• Guiding Effective Learning and Teaching
• Assessment for Learning

Dissertation/report

All students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a 20,000-word dissertation or a 10,000-word report.

Teaching and learning

Depending on the modules taken, the programme is delivered through face-to-face evening sessions, intensive five day face-to-face daytime sessions, and or on-line. A typical evening face-to-face session consists of two and a half hours of lectures, dialogue, small group discussions, presentations and/or a range of other activities.

Normally applicants are expected to have a second-class Bachelor's degree from a UK university, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard, and a clearly expressed interest in educational assessment, gained largely through experience. Teaching, assessment development and implementation, and/or policy experience is very welcomed, but not a requirement.