Collaborative evaluation or peer assessment for the award of CEU microcredentials
What is peer assessment?
Peer assessment or collaborative evaluation is a very useful approach to boost learning in any education setting, whether in person or online, with great capacity to drive the acquisition of 21st century skills.
It involves students assessing their peers – their fellow students – according to an assessment framework established by the institution.
In this case, students take on the role usually reserved for the lecturer, encouraging them to become more involved in the related content and activities and faciliting a greater understanding of them.
The very fact of having to assess each other increases commitment and engagement and encourages the development of values and principles such as equality, respect and meritocracy.
The Peer-Reviewed Badges Project at CEU Universities
The CEU Cardenal Herrera University began this process, and now all the CEU Universities are implemented a peer assessment system to to enable microcredentials to be awarded within the Student Clubs, which are run by the students themselves. This project is based on the assumption that students will take on one of two types of role within a club: a member of the management team for the club, or a standard club member taking part in the activities promoted and organized by the management team.
Throughout this process, the role of the University is to enable the Student Clubs to offer microcredentials, developed by the Office of the Vice-Rector for Students and University Life and approved by the quality assurance committees and the University’s Governing Council. The club members themselvesare the ones who can best define how competencies can be acquired within the club and what the criteria should be, adding value to the award of the badge in the eyes of all the club members.
Peer-Reviewed Badges in practice: the example of the CEU Medequinus Club (Equine Medicine):
To give a greater insight into the development of microcredentials during 2021-22 and the establishment of earning criteria, let’s look at the badges for the CEU Medequinus (Equine Medicine) Student Club.
1. Leadership:
Description:
Promoter / Manager of the Equine Medicine Student Club – Leadership skills: ability to promote and lead an international social initiative. Ability to lead and influence others to create a student club; ability to lead and influence his or her peers; ability to interact with the management structure of the University; ability to manage and organize events and academic conferences, solve problems, take decisions,and manage budgets; ability to communicate publicly with teams and large audiences, in person and on social media; ability to listen; ability to intereact with external professionals and with a range of associations and professional bodies. Motivation to expand his or her knowledge and skills regarding equine medicine.
Earning Criteria:
To gain this microcredential, students must form part of the management committee for the club.
2. Teamwork:
Description:
Member of the Equine Medicine Student Club – Skill in forming part of and participating in peer-led initiatives: Ability to form part of peer groups focused on shared interests; ability to carry out research and find relevant literature; ability to communicate publicly with team-members; ability to work effectively in a team with peers; motivation to expand his or her knowledge and skills regarding equine medicine.
Earning Criteria:
To gain this microcredential, students must meet the following criteria:
- To be a member of the club and participate in at least one of the four sub-groups.
- To give at least one talk.
- To attend at least 75% of the talks/training sessions.
3. Communication:
Description:
Member of the Equine Medicine Student Club – Competency of communication. The student has received communication training and possesses experience in activities that have improved his or her interpersonal communication skills, liaising with different types of interlocutors in a range of academic, professional and social settings. Motivation to expand his or her knowledge and skills regarding equine medicine.
Earning Criteria:
To gain the teamwork microcredential, the members of the student club must meet the following criteria:
- Option 1: To be a member of the club and to participate in at least two of the four subgroups, giving at least two talks/presentation to the subgroups.
- Option 2: To be a member of the club and to participate in at least one of the four subgroups, giving at least one talk/presentation and to take part in at least one journal round.
Three powerful reasons for encouraging peer assessment in the form of peer-reviewed badges at CEU Universities
- 1. It encourages students to get involved in the creation of activities.
- 2. It helps students to develop in-demand competencies and to put into practice what they know while also having a good time by participating in enjoyable and interesting club activities.
- 3. It reduces the role of the University in management and decision-making of the Student Clubs, allowing the student members to take control of them.
