Lee Sutherland

Bio: Lee Sutherland is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Higher education & Quality assurance. The author has an hindex of 3, co-authored 5 publications receiving 85 citations.

Balancing knowledge construction and skills training in universities of technology

Abstract: This article considers the prevalence of what have been termed 'training discourses' as dominant practices within a particular University of Technology, and discusses the implications of such discourses for teaching and learning. The rapid emergence of this training or skills discourse in Universities of Technology in South Africa, in preference to discourses that emphasise praxis (a combination of theory and practice) and, by implication, of social redress and transformation, is interrogated within the framework of the current emphasis on training for economic growth. While in some instances the training discourses could be considered empowering for students because of the inclusion of authentic, workplace practices, these discourses could also be considered constraining if they limit students' ability to solve problems critically and creatively. The ability to adapt to new and changing workplace environments, this article will argue, could be better developed by a more developmental discourse of 'critiquing', 'knowing' and 'doing', rather than just 'doing'.

Do good researchers make good teachers? : research paper

Abstract: There has been an upsurge of interest in the teaching-research symbiosis of the university in South Africa. The aim of the research reported on in this article is to investigate the relationship between research productivity and teaching effectiveness (as assessed by students) at a South African University, and to compare the results with similar studies abroad. The international survey shows that correlations between research productivity and individual dimensions of teaching effectiveness are, with few exceptions, always positive, although not significantly high. The study undertaken in a South African university and reported on here, also found positive correlations between research productivity and all dimensions of teaching effectiveness. These findings suggest that research productivity and teaching effectiveness are two mutually reinforcing factors, and that it is not pedagogically sound to attempt to separate the two functions.

Policy, pragmatic, and problems in quality in higher education

Abstract: This article explores the development of policy in quality assurance in higher education. While it briefly examines the broader context of quality assurance in South Africa in terms of the National Qualifications Framework as one of the political levers for establishing a quality assurance system in education and training systemically it focuses more specifically on policy development in the higher education sector, in particular, that constitutes the backdrop for most of the current quality management initiatives. It argues that the current policy-dominated quality assurance environment is a positive and enabling framework, without which extensive educational transformation would not be taking place. While acknowledging some of the limitations of the current implementation of the quality assurance system, it attempts to rebut some of the current arguments that are foregrounding a discourse of resistance to quality assurance initiatives in ways that constructed these initiatives as managerial, and as interfering with the autonomy of institutions of higher education. While acknowledging that policy and the transformation that it brings with it remain contested, ambiguous and sometimes contradictory, this article will conclude by arguing that policy development in the quality assurance arena has been a catalyst for significant and benevolent educational reform in higher education in South Africa.

Involving students in the assessment process : research article

Abstract: In order to broaden the range of assessment methods in a first year Geography module at the University of Natal, Durban, peer- and self-assessment activities were integrated into the teaching and learning process. The main purpose of the study was to establish whether involvement of students in the assessment process assisted them in assessing their own academic worth and was beneficial to their learning. In this study students provided estimates of their grades immediately prior to an assessment and immediately afterwards. They then graded an assessment written by a peer as well as their own. Comparisons of these estimates with the final lecturer-awarded grade for the assessment revealed poor correlations initially, but these correlations improved during the course of the study, indicating an improved understanding of their academic worth through participation in the assessment process. These results strengthen the case for using peer- and self-assessment in South African higher educational contexts.

Student perspectives on formative peer assessment: an attempt to deepen learning?

Abstract: Peer assessment is a common form of shared learning in which students provide feedback on each others work. Peer assessment takes many forms; and involves students and tutors taking various roles at different stages of the process. This study explores the views and opinions of undergraduate students in relation to their perceptions and experiences of formative peer assessment introduced as a learning development opportunity for the first time. The study found that on the whole formative peer assessment was a positive experience in enhancing students learning and development. However, consideration needs to be taken to address individual learning styles, as a limited number of students found the process to be less useful. Consequently, when tutors are constructing peer assessment strategies they should be cognisant at the planning stage of the variety of learning styles that are evident in order to maximise the development opportunities this can bring to students.

Relationships between student characteristics and self‐, peer and tutor evaluations of oral presentations

Abstract: There are many influences on how assessors grade themselves and others. Oral presentations are useful for exploring such factors in peer, self‐ and tutor marked assessments, being rapidly completed and assessed, commonly used in HE and very difficult to anonymize. This opportunistic study examined the effects of gender and level of attainment on the triangulation of marks awarded to student presenters. Grades generated by peer assessment were associated more strongly with tutor‐awarded marks than those from self‐assessment. For self‐assessment there was a strong effect of gender (female students undervalued their performance compared with tutor grades). Peer assessment produced higher marks than from tutors, perhaps because of the close‐knit community developed during residential courses. For tutor marks, the greatest variability was at the lower end of the scale, whereas peer assessors were most variable when marking students who self‐evaluated or peer assessed highly. Students awarded a narrower range o...

Assessment for learning: a case study using feedback effectively in an essay‐style test

Abstract: Strategic and well‐planned use of feedback in the assessment process is key to promoting learning. This paper evaluates the role a two‐stage test process played in guiding and assisting student learning in a second‐year module at the University of KwaZulu‐Natal, South Africa. Having been provided with verbal and written feedback without grades from the first test, students were given the opportunity to write a different, second test, and each was required to choose which one was graded. Students were generally very positive about the assessment process, most participated willingly and fully, many learned differently for the second test, and there was evidence of meta‐cognitive awareness and understanding. Despite this, a number of students experienced difficulty and frustration in judging the quality of their work. The discussion focuses on process and learning issues, on the utility of feedback and on formative test assessment procedures.

A Model for Assessing the Development of Students’ Creativity in the Context of Problem Posing

Abstract: In a changing technological society, creativity is recognized as the vehicle of economic and social growth. Although the education system has a central role in developing all students’ creativity, it is not often nurtured in schools. Several conditions are offered to justify this situation, among them: external pressures to cover the curriculum and succeed in standardized tests that generally require rote implementation of rules and algorithmic thinking; teachers’ tendency to teach similarly to the way they themselves were taught as school students; relating creativity to giftedness, and therefore avoiding nurturing all students’ creativity; teachers’ difficulties in assessing their students’ creativity and its development due to a lack of an available simple tool; and more. This paper is aimed at responding to the latter condition, suggesting a coherent and accessible tool or model for assessing students’ creativity and its development in the context of problem posing. The proposed model considers 4 measurable aspects of creativity-fluency, flexibility, originality and organization, and a total score of creativity that is based on relative weights of each aspect. Viewing creativity as relative, the scores for these 4 aspects reflect learner’s achievements in relation to his or her reference group. The proposed model has two flexible components—the first relates to teachers’ interpretation of originality, and the second relates to the weights they may wish to ascribe each aspect of creativity. In addition, it is suggested to provide learners with a graphical display of their scores and progress in order to enable them to refine their products in successive iterations. The examples in this paper are taken from mathematics; however the proposed model can be adapted to any other discipline.

Students’ learning-approach profiles in relation to their university experience and success

Abstract: What is the connection between student success and their approaches to learning? Do learning approaches develop with university experience? We explored these questions by constructing profiles using a specially developed fixed response instrument and administering this to students at two similar South African universities. Groups consisted of access course applicants, access course students, and first and second year mainstream chemistry students. Successful senior students showed more sophisticated approaches to learning than other groups. Unsuccessful students fell into two different categories: those using a surface approach, and predominantly first generation tertiary students who used deep approaches. We discuss possible reasons for the latter group's lack of success. These findings raise questions for academic development practitioners advocating the use of deep approaches. The instrument was found to be useful for both diagnostic and pedagogic purposes.