(2006). Learning‐oriented assessment: principles and practice. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education: Vol. 31, Learning-oriented assessment: principles and practice, pp. 395-398.

This paper reports on part of a wider study concerned with the collaborative efforts of an inquirer and six people with an intellectual disability, to develop a grounded theory explaining the processes by which these informants manage the relationships within their personal communities. The study was conducted through a series of in-depth interviews with each informant; a process characterised by information sharing, tentative theory development and elaboration, and informants' checking the accuracy of the emerging theory. This inductive approach allowed not only an insight into the lives of each informant, but recognised the informants' expertise in matters concerning their own lives and thus facilitated the emergence of theoretical elements of relevance to the informants themselves. The focus of the paper is on the collaborative or partnership approach adopted. The outcomes of the research partnership are detailed and implications drawn for the role of research in the lifestyles of people with an intellectual disability.

This study describes the use of a metacognitive approach for self‐assessment of teacher education students. The design of the study was guided by the principles of learning‐oriented assessment and the centrality of reflection for teachers. The study comprised five case studies undertaken in five teacher education programmes. In each programme, students self‐assessed at the beginning, middle and end of learning. Subgroups of students were invited to represent their learning using concept maps and were interviewed on their progression in self‐assessment. Analysis indicated that students found the metacognitive approach supportive of their learning and self‐assessment. Students were more aware of their learning and thinking processes at the end of the study. Further, teachers involved in the project found the method demanding yet generating useful feedback which enhanced their teaching.

This study examined the prediction of academic self-concept (English and Mathematics) and learning strategies (deep and surface), and their direction of effect, on academic achievement (English and Mathematics) of 8,354 students from 16 secondary schools in Hong Kong. Two competing models were tested to ascertain the direction of effect: Model A posited the effect of academic self-concept on learning strategies, whereas Model B posited the effect of learning strategies on academic self-concept. Structural equation modeling indicated that the data fit both models adequately, although Model B was found to have more applied heuristic value for practitioners than Model A because intervention is easier for learning strategies than self-concept. Further investigation also supported the reciprocal relationship between academic self-concept and academic achievement. The findings suggest that academic self-concept, learning strategies, and academic achievement have reciprocal relationships with each other.