Mining institutional data for hidden truths

Abstract

While a great deal of thought and effort is devoted to developing assessment strategies, policies and processes, there is little evidence that the re-assessment of students who fail at the first attempt receives the same level of scrutiny.  This Viewpoint paper is stimulated by a research project, discussed at the HEIR (Higher Education Institutional Research) Conference (LJMU, September 2016) that explored the success rates of undergraduates who have had Level 4 re-assessments.  One of the purposes of this research was to understand more explicitly how re-assessment policies can contribute to the retention, continuation and success of students, one of the metrics referred to in the higher education White Paper, ‘Success as a Knowledge Economy’.