ENHANCING ASSESSMENT IN THE BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES  

The project involved a collaboration between The University of Melbourne and The University of Sydney, with the Centre for the Study of Higher Education as the lead agency.

Centre for the Study of Higher Education
   The University of Melbourne

Professor Kerri-Lee Krause [joint Project Director] is a national expert on the first year undergraduate experience and was the project director for the recent National Study of Trends in the First Year Experience. She has managed several other successful research projects and her research interests focus on the transition of students from secondary school to university. Her disciplinary background of educational psychology brings to the project expertise in understanding conditions for effective learning and teaching in the undergraduate years. Kerri-Lee also has detailed working knowledge of online learning environments and the possibilities for online assessment.

Dr Kerri-Lee Harris [joint Project Director] has a research background in the field of cell biology and extensive teaching experience in the biological sciences at the University of Melbourne. At the CSHE, she developed a novel framework to guide and support a review of assessment policies and practices at the University of Melbourne (2005). Kerri-Lee has also conducted research into science teaching and was principal author of Who's Teaching Science? (2005) a major national report commissioned by the Australian Council of Deans of Science. In addition, she led a two-year evaluation of the STAR peer-tutoring program in science at Murdoch University.

Ms Robin Garnett [Project Officer] has taught science education courses at the University of Canberra and the University of Western Australia. She has been the project manager for a number of education projects, including Learning outcomes and curriculum development in Australian physiotherapy education (2005).

Department of Genetics
   The University of Melbourne

Associate Professor Dawn Gleeson won the Australian Award for University Teaching for Biological Sciences, Health and Related Studies in 2003 and has won numerous teaching awards at the University of Melbourne. She is Director of First Year Studies in Biology and lectures in the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Biomedical Science. She presently coordinates the assessment of 1500+ students studying Biology, including both formative and summative assessment and the assessment of evaluation skills.

School of Biological Sciences
   The University of Sydney

Associate Professor Mary Peat was Director of First Year Biology for 15 years, during which she developed a variety of formative and summative assessment approaches, including online self-assessment modules to help students monitor their own understanding - these have been disseminated through conferences and publications. Mary won a Quality Teaching Award in 2003 from the NSW Minister for Education and Training and the Australian College of Educators, and has won two outstanding teaching awards from the University of Sydney. She was recently appointed Director of Teaching and Learning for the College of Sciences and Technology.

Dr Charlotte Taylor is the Associate Dean for Learning and Teaching in the Faculty of Science and holds a University Excellence in Teaching Award. She is a former deputy director of First Year Biology and has extensive experience in course design, assessment and online learning for large classes of over 1500 students. She is Chair of the Science Faculty Education Research Group (SciFER) and has published collaborative papers in areas of learning through writing, teaching large classes, giving feedback and online discussions. She is currently involved in two SciFER-funded projects on student understanding and use of feedback for written assignments, and two university-funded teaching improvement projects on Generic Skills and on enhancing the use of student feedback in course improvement and design. Her work on understanding threshold concepts in biology will be extended, in a 2006 study in Australian and UK universities, to encompass investigations of teachers' conceptions of troublesome knowledge.