Design principles for assessment of sustainability teaching

Nicholson, Dawn ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8402-9481 and Vargas, Valeria (2021) Design principles for assessment of sustainability teaching. In: Assessment and Feedback in a Post-Pandemic Era: a time for learning and inclusion. AdvanceHE, pp. 183-195. ISBN 9781916359352

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Abstract

This article gives an overview of effective assessment practice for sustainability teaching in higher education. After briefly reviewing ways in which sustainability teaching is embedded in curricula, we consider attributes of sustainability assessment including the role of competences and the wider pedagogy of sustainability teaching. We then propose a framework of nine design principles for sustainability assessment. We argue that assessment of sustainability learning is most effective when aligned with curricula that are learner-centred, flexible, future-facing, active and experiential, collaborative, multidisciplinary, authentic and situated, affective and enquiry-based. These attributes promote the systemic thinking needed to explore global sustainability challenges, and they help develop self-regulated learning. A brief case study illustrates some of the principles and outcomes around equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). We conclude that effective sustainability assessment requires whole-institution adoption of future-facing and flexible pedagogies.