Supporting Self- Peer- and Collaborative-Assessment through a Web-based Environment

Abstract

Self-, peerand collaborative-assessment are three innovative methods aiming to integrate learning and assessment and promote the active engagement of learners in the assessment process and in knowledge construction. This paper presents a web-based environment, referred to as PECASSE, which supports these assessment methods. In addition to the basic functions of uploading learners’ activities/reviews, grading/commentary and results presentation, PECASSE offers the options of individual and collaborative elaboration/review of the activities, collaboration of authors and/or assessors in synchronous and asynchronous way, submission of the activities up to three rounds after the assessors’ comments, evaluation of assessors as well as facilities for grouping students, assigning assessors and applying multiple review methods. The results from a preliminary study are encouraging regarding the usefulness and the usability of the provided facilities and revealed the students’ positive attitude to the PECASSE environment.