COURSEWORK AND HOLISTIC ASSESSMENTS

Why are they important?

Coursework could possibly be considered equivalent to holistic assessments. With more than half of students deciding to take up a vocational course, this needs to not only be recognised in Further and Higher Education, but throughout education as a whole in the UK. Since not everyone will be going down an academic pathway, it is crucial that young people are prepared for the future and potentially changing their minds about what kind of courses they'd like to take up.

This is why it is very important to not only have one kind of assessment when several students have not entirely specialised in their subjects (the only specialisation we have when we reach Secondary School is the choice of GCSE options). As a result, it might potentially be a good idea to give students the option (unless we're talking about Maths and possibly Science which, in my opinion, should mainly be exam-based) of whether to take more vocational or academic assessments. For example, in History, someone may decide to choose either three coursework assignments and a functional exam, or a more challenging exam and one coursework assignment. It is crucial that all studies are recognised and valued equally by all Further and Higher Educational Institutes as well as employers.


          My not-so-representative survey 😂

























Medium.com has mentioned some of the core aims of coursework, which includes "demonstrating knowledge and understanding", "developing research skills", "time management [skills]" and strengthening one's "collaborative" and communicative skills. These kind of skills are crucial for the general workplace, moving onto the next step of your education and more than anything, skills for the future.

My survey I created on SurveyPlanet (39 participants) implies that coursework has more benefits than doubts. One question I included was which subjects people would like to see a rise of coursework in. Most picked History, Geography, Art and Music/Music Technology, with History and Geography at the top. Another question I asked was what kind of coursework assignments students would like to see in humanity subjects, at least 75% suggested that creating a research project on a particular topic could be a possibility while at least 50% believed that writing an essay throughout the whole term might work out. Someone I acquainted on Reddit believes that there needs to be a boost in coursework, however, the deadlines should not be too strict since all students work at their own pace. Maybe the assignments could be completed in about 1-2 months. In conclusion, it is important that coursework deadlines are fair and do not pressurise students (and teachers) into performing very well in short amounts of time.



My Survey - which subjects the participants believe which need an increase in coursework





























Evidence from Gov.UK

I have come across an article on Gov.UK about teachers' views on coursework, with many supporting the idea of it. When they were asked about whether it benefitted students or not, 29% believed coursework "gives them more experience/ helps them build skills in the subject" and another 25% believes it "encourages independent learning". 23% also believe that coursework is generally "less stressful" for students as they do not have to complete an exam by the end of the academic year.

Having said this, 31% do not come to a conclusion that the teachers themselves benefit from coursework, but instead, 24% of them believes it helps them to get to know their students and "it allows [teachers themselves] greater freedom and flexibility within the curriculum". 10% also believe it creates time "for practical skills to be formally assessed". English teachers support coursework the most. The main drawbacks to coursework are the fact that 65% of teachers have stated that it "takes time to mark" students' work, with 46% claiming it "gives [them] more work". Religious Studies teachers are the least likely to support the idea of GCSE coursework.

Alternatively, another question was asked about whether heads of certain subjects would rather have no coursework components.

Disagreements:
46% for Religious Studies
63% for Business Studies
59% for History
63% for Geography
72% for English Language/Literature
71% for Modern Foreign Languages
79% for Music




Overall

Coming to a scenario, there is overall support for coursework with some drawbacks. Generally speaking, the results on Gov.UK prove that many teachers (particularly English, Music and Geography ones) agree with the concept of coursework in GCSEs, especially as it could allow greater flexibility and space and time for students to improve their vocational skills in a subject. It is also generally believed that coursework benefits students more than teachers, reducing the amount of stress and pressure typically used in exams. However, the main issue is the time-consumption. With 65% of teachers stating that it takes time to mark and students combining it with revising for exams in many other subjects. Plagiarism is also a possibility.

To combine coursework assignments and organisation in the best way possible, it is very important that the content is carefully set. Also that teachers and external markers recognise each student equally, students do not feel pressured into cramming in heavy amounts of research, some GCSE exams are taken in Year 10 so they could have more time to complete it and their assignments are thoroughly checked by markers in case there is any potential plagiarism.