The death of exams? Grade inflation and student satisfaction when coursework replaces exams (Supplementary materials)
Description
This code will replicate the results and tables in the following paper: Stankov, P. (2024). The death of exams? Grade inflation and student satisfaction when coursework replaces exams, International Review of Econonomics Education, 46, July 2024, 100289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iree.2024.100289 *** You will need STATA to run the code. Before running the code, please create a folder named Results, and a subfolder Graphs, in the same folder where your code and data is. This will avoid a clutter of graphs among your data and .do files. Abstract of the paper: A mid-sized advanced undergraduate economics module has undergone an assessment reform, where a typical 60% final exam was replaced by four scaffolded coursework assignments, each carrying a 15% weight in the final grade. As a result, student satisfaction with assessment and feedback went up at the expense of higher staff workload. In addition, the reform raised the final grades over and above the increase typically associated with an improvement in learning and engagement, effectively triggering grade inflation. The paper identifies the coursework assignment that inflated the grades. It then proceeds with grade simulations, whose purpose is to formulate an assessment reform agenda aiming to maintain high student satisfaction, disinflate grades, and stabilise staff workload. Finally, the paper evaluates the scalability of assessment reforms where final exams are targeted for replacement by coursework assessments. The evaluation suggests caution with such reforms, if they are necessary in the first place. They may both be feasible and desirable in small classes, but compelling arguments caution against a premature wholesale rollout.