Helping the McGill community implement effective methods of assessment.
Group overview
In 2011, a student posed the following question to McGill’s Senate:
“Many students in McGill have large classes of at least 100 people until their last year, […] in many cases, students will only get to see their single midterm grade […] a month later. This means no evaluation is available until about the 10th week of the semester. What can the University do to have smaller classes, more extensive and rapid feedback and enhanced access to professors?”
This question was the catalyst for the 2011 creation of the Working Group on Assessment of Students’ Learning. When the Working Group’s university mandate ended in 2014, the group continued to meet regularly, and was renamed the Assessment and Feedback Group (AFG).
The AFG engages the McGill community in considering effective methods for assessing student work and strategies for providing feedback to students. We are interested in formal methods of assessment resulting in a grade, as well as strategies for providing feedback that students can use to improve their performance during the learning process. The group meets once a month throughout the academic year to rethink assessment and feedback practices with a view to enhancing McGill students’ learning experiences.
We hold events that showcase effective and creative approaches to assessment and feedback used by McGill instructors, and provide a forum for discussion among peers interested in addressing these topics. We also publish a companion blog series.
Current members
- Giovanna Badia, Librarian, Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Engineering
- Prof. Alejandra (Sandra) Barriales Bouche, Language, Literatures, and Cultures
- Prof. Caroline Begg, Plant Science
- Rebecca Brosseau, Graduate student, Education
- Prof. Lawrence Chen, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Prof. Lilian Childress, Physics
- Prof. Julia Freeman, School of Environment
- Victoria Glynn, Graduate student, Biology
- Dr. Angela Guadagno, Academic Associate, Faculty of Management/Teaching and Learning Services
- Tareq Hardan, Graduate student, School of Social Work
- Prof. Donetta Hines, McGill Writing Centre
- Prof. Sun-Young Kim, Language, Literatures, and Cultures
- Effie Konstantinopoulos, Associate Director, Exams and Operations, Student Accessibility and Achievement
- Dr. Leigh Korey, Academic Associate, Faculty of Management/Teaching and Learning Services
- Charlene Lewis-Sutherland, Senior Advisor: Equity and Anti-Racism Teaching and Learning, Teaching and Learning Services
- Bruktawit Maru, Graduate student, Pharmacology
- Dr. Maria Orjuela-Laverde, Academic Associate, Teaching and Learning Services (TLS lead)
- Teri Philips, Director, Office for Students with Disabilities
- Prof. Ken Ragan, Physics
- Prof. David Ragsdale, Neurology and Neurosurgery
- Dr. Carolyn Samuel, Associate Director, Faculty and Teaching Development, Teaching and Learning Services
- Dr. Amanda Saxe, Academic Associate, Faculty of Engineering/Teaching and Learning Services
- Kira Smith, Student Engagement Officer, Office of Science Education
- Dr. Shujiao Wang, Assessment Specialist, Faculty of Medicine
- Dr. Laura Winer, Director, Teaching and Learning Services
- Yichen Wu, Undergraduate student, Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering
- Dr. Armin Yazdani, Office of Science Education
Past members
- Prof. Rhonda Amsel, Psychology
- Chris Bailey, Graduate student, Kinesiology and Physical Education
- Tanja Beck, Associate Director, Office for Students with Disabilities
- Alexander Burdett, Graduate student, Information Studies
- Alicia Choi, Graduate student and course lecturer, Music Performance
- April Colosimo, Librarian Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Engineering
- Prof. Nathalie Cooke, English
- Eva Dobler, Teaching and Learning Consultant, Teaching and Learning Services
- Gabrielle Doucette-Poirier, Undergraduate student, Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering
- Prof. Elizabeth Elbourne, History
- Kristen Emmett, Graduate student, Information Studies
- Mercedes Garcia Holguera, Graduate student, Engineering, Tomlinson Graduate Teaching Fellow
- Catherine Grosdidier, Undergraduate student, Engineering
- Kate Hardin, Graduate student, Integrated Studies in Education
- Prof. Miranda Hickman, English
- Amanda Jarrell, Graduate student, Education and Counselling Psychology
- Dr. Lorie Kloda, Assessment Librarian, Centre for Medical Education
- Prof. Penelope Kostopoulos, Neuroscience
- Anja Kroon, Undergraduate student, Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering
- Evan Laflamme, Undergraduate student, Engineering
- Devon Lemire, Graduate student, Information Studies
- Diane Maratta, Learning Technology Consultant, Teaching and Learning Services
- Dr. Casey McCormick, Communication and Cultural Studies
- Janice Ngiam, Undergraduate student, Psychology
- Seyed-Rahi Modirnia, Student
- Dr. Anita Parmar, Research Advisor for Student Life and Learning
- Dan Petrescu, Graduate student, Chemistry
- Teddy Quintoro, Learning Technology Consultant, Teaching and Learning Services
- Ali Mikael Sanji, Undergraduate student, Political Science
- Marcy Slapcoff, Director, Office of Science Education
- Daria Sleiman, Undergraduate student, Philosophy
- Dr. Mariela Tovar, Senior Academic Associate, Teaching and Learning Services, past Chair
- Simone Tissenbaum, Graduate student, Integrated Studies in Education
- Gift Samuel Tshuma, Access Service Advisor, Office for Students with Disabilities
- Prof. Shauna Van Praagh, Law
- Dr. Maryam Wagner, Assistant Professor, Centre for Medical Education
- Mariette Xenopoulos, Learning Technology Consultant, Teaching and Learning Services
- Mirabel Xing, Undergraduate student, Sociology
- Chloe Yam, Undergraduate student, Psychology
- Henry Yu, Undergraduate student, Management
- Kenz Zaghib, Undergraduate student, Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering
- Kate Zhang, Student
- Zijian Zheng, Student
