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Okay, I'm back on board for the next session of #CRADLEConf2020. Had some pleasant lunch chats and now just waiting on the room to open...
Woo. @chieadachi welcoming us to the session and acknowledging all country & places where we are attending from, and Elders, past, present & emerging.
This session uses Foucauldian approaches & Chie mentions this is exciting as she's a recovering linguist XD
#CRADLEConf2020
This session uses Foucauldian approaches & Chie mentions this is exciting as she's a recovering linguist XD
#CRADLEConf2020
The first presentation is from Jaci Mason - "Inconsistent Moderation: the voices of sessional academics". This is part of her doctoral work and her supervisors are Lynne Roberts & Helen Flavell.
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
We rely on academics to make judgements on students' work. Consensus/social moderation is commonly used to agree on mark allocation. Has been reports of power differentials btwn ongoing & session acas - hence this study
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Jaci invited a range of participants - ended up with 4 focus groups, with 11 sessional academics, with varying length of experience and teaching qualifications.
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Sessional academics found consensus moderation was necessary for fairness and consistency, and made them more certain in their own judgement. But it was also confusing as practices varied between unit co-ordinators... and slippery terminology contributed.
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Overall it was fraught - nuanced, time demanding, chaotic, unwieldy, carried out in a panicked/last minute approach just before marks released.
Some did see it was a learning opportunity - with caring unit co-ordinators who invested time.
#CRADLEConf2020
Some did see it was a learning opportunity - with caring unit co-ordinators who invested time.
#CRADLEConf2020
Seems like it was reactive rather than proactive - less time spent at the start orienting to standards, but peer discussion and collaboration were helpful
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Two discourses were identified:
1. casualisation of teaching, precarity of the sessional (learning on the job, sank or swam, prime control of the unit co-ordinator, few rights for sessionals)
#CRADLEConf2020
1. casualisation of teaching, precarity of the sessional (learning on the job, sank or swam, prime control of the unit co-ordinator, few rights for sessionals)
#CRADLEConf2020
2. the neoliberal university - the paradox of standards. Maintaining academic standards while maintaining student satisfaction. Passing students and talking about "finding marks"
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
In practice, it took longer than time allocated for marking and moderation.... so, either became a tickbox exercise rather than genuine engagement, or everyone put in a lot more time.
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Power gradient - surveillance, compliance, very little dialogue. Some sessionals found they were told to change their marks - or even worse - their marks were changed for them. "Just pass them" - resulted in passive, normalised grading to not stand out
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Jaci then did further work with expert academics, and integrated findings across studies to develop a preliminary framework for consensus moderation.
Aim is to foster consistent practice across a teaching team.
#CRADLEConf2020
Aim is to foster consistent practice across a teaching team.
#CRADLEConf2020
The framework moves across time - before study period, during the study period, calibration before marking, intra & post marking moderation.
Recommendations to sector also around recognition of importance of moderation activities, policy, culture and support.
#CRADLEConf2020
Recommendations to sector also around recognition of importance of moderation activities, policy, culture and support.
#CRADLEConf2020
Jaci @jaci_mason is inviting feedback on the framework - survey you can complete here https://curtin.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8IdasaqheSgsLnT?Q_CHL=qr
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Lots of good discussion questions wondering about support for sessionals - Jaci confirming that it varied and that participants found the topic emotional. Minimal discussion around criteria, standards
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Sarah @SarahLambertOz doing a good job of synthesising and summarising.
But sounds like a really suboptimal situation where sessionals were exploited and had to find their own way to be "okay" with the situation - @susie_mac sums it up with well with "Crikey"
#CRADLEConf2020
But sounds like a really suboptimal situation where sessionals were exploited and had to find their own way to be "okay" with the situation - @susie_mac sums it up with well with "Crikey"
#CRADLEConf2020
Workarounds - sessionals would consult their fellow sessionals rather than the unit chair and this was how peer support came into play. Very different from the "official" requirements/channels
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
Some suggestions in the discussion about Students as Partners as another layer/model which might improve the situation. Realities of time and budget still loom large though, especially in the current climate.
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
There's a potential for unpaid labour to blow out but Jaci is suggesting strategies like annotated exemplars might help in addition to reasonable expectations (for staff, and also student task length) and paying people for these activities
#CRADLEConf2020
#CRADLEConf2020
