Students’ perceptions of assessment quality related to their learning approaches and learning outcomes

Abstract

This study aims to provide more insight into how students’ perceptions of assessment quality are related to their learning approaches and learning outcomes. Six variables associated with the construct of students’ perceptions of assessment quality are distinguished: 1) effects of assessment on learning, 2) fairness of assessment, 3) conditions of assessment, 4) interpretation of test scores, 5) authenticity of assessment, and 6) credibility of assessment. 204 higher education students completed the Students’ Perceptions of Assessment Quality Questionnaire (SPAQQ), and the Approaches to Learning and Studying Inventory (ALSI), and the students’ learning outcomes (grades) were obtained. Firstly, results indicate that the students’ perceptions of the effects of assessment on learning are positively related to the students’ deep learning approach and the strategic learning approach and negatively related to the surface learning approach. Secondly, the students’ perceptions of the conditions of assessment are positively related to their learning outcomes of the assessments.