Integrating Skills Development Across Teaching and Assessment:
BSc / CertHE Criminology Skills Workbook
Sarah Lamble & Linda Banner
School of Law
1. Context and academic rationale
In 2010-2011 a curriculum and assessment review was undertaken for the Criminology Certificate
of Higher Education Programme, in preparation for the launch of a new BSc Degree in Criminology
and Criminal Justice. Feedback from tutors suggested that Certificate students needed more help
with academic skills such as referencing and essay writing. Many students were feeling frustrated
about losing marks for not following referencing protocols and seemed unclear about academic
essay writing expectations. The external examiner for the Criminology CertHE also raised concerns
about the quality of referencing in student essays and flagged this as an area for improvement.
2. Project Structure
Rather than addressing these concerns in an isolated way (such as running standalone skills
sessions), we decided to take a more integrated approach that would link the curriculum,
assessment and feedback more holistically. While making changes across the programme, we
focused specifically on the core introductory module “Understanding Crime”, which was assessed
by two 2,000-word essays.
We replaced the first essay with a “Skills Workbook”, which would directly correspond to academic
skills sessions taught in class, and feed into the second assessment, which remained an essay. The
new Skills Workbook focuses on note taking, how and where to research, accurate citation, time
management, revision strategies and personal reflection on study habits.
To complete the Skills Workbook, students are required to undertake a set of incremental tasks
related to research, essay and exam writing and then reflect on their own learning processes.
Different tasks can be undertaken on a weekly basis, and then submitted when complete as part of
a portfolio of work.
In developing the new assessment model we had the following objectives in mind:
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To design an assessment format that better links academic skills learning in the classroom
to formal assessment (particularly focusing on academic referencing and essay writing);
To create an assessment that better prepares students for writing essays and exams by
breaking down the steps into manageable tasks;
To increase the diversity of assessment types on the CertHe and BSc, being mindful of the
range of learning styles, dis/abilities and needs among students (including ESL students);
To design an assessment format that works across the CertHE version of the module (which
is open access) and the BSc version (which is screened through applications);
To develop a learning-based assessment and feedback model that builds students’
confidence;
To encourage students to reflect on their own learning styles, work habits and thinking
processes to help them become more self-aware, independent and motivated learners;
To embed best practices that promote retention for all students and encourage CertHE
students to transition to the BSc, thereby also supporting the College Retention Strategy
(2010-14).
Based on these objectives we designed a Skills Workbook Template for the students to complete,
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along with a marking scheme.
Students are asked to download the template from Moodle, save it as a working-document and
then upload it back to Moodle for submission when complete. The template is designed to provide
a clear structure and framework for completing the assignment, while allowing students to
undertake each task at their own pace. The template adopts universal design principles (e.g., sans
serif font, non-justified spacing, text in bullet point form) to be user friendly for students with
dyslexia and visual impairments.
The due date for the Skills Workbook is set midway through the first term so detailed feedback can
be provided well before any other assessments are due. By setting an early deadline and including
tasks for which students can achieve high marks, the Skills Workbook allows students to build
confidence and aims to reduce the number of students who drop out in January when multiple
assessments are due.
3. Project Outcomes
Responses from students have been very positive. Many students said that the detailed breakdown
of tasks as well as the prompt feedback helped them to better understand the skills and standards
required for academic essay writing. Many also said that they had not realised how much time it
takes to do proper referencing and the assignment alerted them to the need for better time
management for future assessments. Several described the Skills Workbook as a ‘wake up call’ in
terms of recognising what is involved in producing sound academic work. Students’ comments in
the self-reflection component of the assignment also demonstrated increased self-awareness
around personal study habits.
The assessment results also helped us as teachers to flag individual students that need more
support, and identify particular skill areas where follow-up is needed. This has enabled us to adjust
our teaching practices before the next round of assessments are due. For example, the results on
the Skills Workbook indicated that some students were still struggling with referencing and essay
planning. In response, our Learning Support Officer was able to offer bespoke skills workshops on
referencing and essay writing in Criminology, which were held a few weeks before the first formal
essays were due.
Finally, the Skills Workbook offers a useful tool for identifying students who are at risk of plagiarism.
Because one of the questions requires students to summarise/paraphrase a particular entry from
their textbook, we can easily cross-check their writing with the original text to ensure they are not
copying directly or merely changing one or two words (which has been a problem in the past). This
allows us to clarify referencing expectations early on and pre-empt plagiarism problems in
subsequent assignments.
4. Improving Learning/Teaching/Assessment Practice
Although considerable educational literature emphasises the importance of diversity in assignment
models as well as the need for more learning-based (rather than testing-focussed) assessments,
essays and exams are still the norm. The new Skills Workbook introduces an alternative model of
assessment which links directly to classroom curriculum, and helps build the skill set that students
need to undertake traditional assessment and successfully complete their studies. While the Skills
Workbook is designed specifically for Criminology, a modified version would be suitable for other
programmes. When presented to the College Learning Development Working Group Meeting in
December 2012 and at a lunchtime “Show and Tell” Learning and Teaching session, the Skills
Workbook was received positively with requests to use the model for other programmes across the
College.
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