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Assessing Computing and ICT: a selection of articles — ICT & Computing in Education
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ICT & Computing in Education

Articles on education technology and related topics
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assessment and the black swan problem by Terry Freedman

assessment and the black swan problem by Terry Freedman

Assessing Computing and ICT: a selection of articles

May 4, 2019

Here’s a round-up of a few articles I’ve written about assessing Computing and ICT over the years. Although some of them were written a while ago, I believe they are still useful and relevant.

Featured
A rubric for assessment? What a joke! Revisted
Jul 7, 2025
A rubric for assessment? What a joke! Revisted
Jul 7, 2025

A lighthearted look at rubrics as a form of assessment.

Jul 7, 2025
Hot Potatoes Cloze Exercise
Apr 12, 2025
Hot Potatoes Cloze Exercise
Apr 12, 2025

A simple, and very old-fashioned looking, cloze exercise!

Apr 12, 2025
The DfE's foray into AI for education: the good news and the (potentilly) bad news
Mar 20, 2025
The DfE's foray into AI for education: the good news and the (potentilly) bad news
Mar 20, 2025

We don’t have very long to wait before the educational AI projects funded by the Department for Education are unveiled, if all goes to plan. But I have some concerns.

Mar 20, 2025
Reflections on assessing computing
Aug 10, 2024
Reflections on assessing computing
Aug 10, 2024

This article was originally published some time ago, when there was a previous iteration of the National Computing. However, although the context has changed, many of the issues remain, which is why I've decided to republish. I hope you find it useful. It has been lightly edited to remove dud links)

Aug 10, 2024
Course evaluations and their pitfalls
Jun 21, 2024
Course evaluations and their pitfalls
Jun 21, 2024

I think evaluations are very odd devices to be honest. Someone once “marked me down” on her evaluation of a one day course I was running on the grounds that the traffic was terrible. I pointed out to her that I wasn’t in charge of local traffic conditions and that she should complain to the council.

Jun 21, 2024
7 reasons that the FAIL acronym fails (Updated)
Mar 30, 2024
7 reasons that the FAIL acronym fails (Updated)
Mar 30, 2024

Failing is empowering.

Mar 30, 2024
Testing pupils using stories (Update)
Jun 29, 2023
Testing pupils using stories (Update)
Jun 29, 2023

Here’s a different and more engaging way of testing pupils’ knowledge, skills and understanding. This is an updated version of an article I wrote in 2020. This version includes some ChatGPT-generated additions.

Jun 29, 2023
My issues with assessment by AI
Sep 13, 2022
My issues with assessment by AI
Sep 13, 2022

I have serious misgivings about the use of AI to assess students’ work.

Sep 13, 2022
Job-seeking as a metaphor for assessment in computing
May 12, 2022
Job-seeking as a metaphor for assessment in computing
May 12, 2022

jobs lineWhen I saw several hundred people lining up for some sort of job registration recently, I immediately thought of the challenges of assessing pupils’ educational technology capability. A bit of a stretch? Not necessarily.

May 12, 2022
Artificial Intelligence and marking: pitfalls (2022 Update)
May 12, 2022
Artificial Intelligence and marking: pitfalls (2022 Update)
May 12, 2022

If AI generates an essay, and another AI grades it, has anything useful actually happened?

May 12, 2022
Perverse incentives in assessment (Updated)
Feb 15, 2022
Perverse incentives in assessment (Updated)
Feb 15, 2022

Trying to be helpful to pupils while assessing their understanding could actually be counter-productive.

Feb 15, 2022
Using badges
Nov 18, 2021
Using badges
Nov 18, 2021

The attractive thing about badges is that a school can invent their own categories and achievement levels.

Nov 18, 2021
The problems with rubrics
Oct 21, 2021
The problems with rubrics
Oct 21, 2021

Rubrics look like an easy way to tackle assessment. But they can be deceptive in that respect, and can cause the unwary to slip up.

Oct 21, 2021
How to create a grade-prediction system in Excel, and save yourself loads of time (Updated)
May 24, 2021
How to create a grade-prediction system in Excel, and save yourself loads of time (Updated)
May 24, 2021

Spotting the unexpected results of mock exams of scores or even hundreds of students need no longer be a nightmare.

May 24, 2021
In Assessment Tags assessing Computing and ICT, assessment
← Digital Exclusion and Digital EqualityThe new DfE education technology strategy: a textual analysis →
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