Exploring the process of evaluative judgement: the case of engineering students judging intercultural competence

Abstract

For students to sustain their learning beyond higher education, it is important for them to develop their evaluative judgement. Although the importance of evaluative judgement is well-established, the process through which students make such judgements remains contested. This study explores students’ evaluative judgement process by asking 20 engineering students to evaluate their own intercultural competence and that of other engineers in task-based interviews. The findings reveal that in the process of judgement-making, students negotiate and navigate multiple dimensions, including their ‘knowledge of intercultural competence’, ‘awareness of bias’, ‘attitude towards development’, ‘capability to judge’, ‘action towards improvement’ and ‘identity as assessor’. Building on these findings, the study further reconceptualises evaluative judgement as a negotiated process rather than a capability.

Keywords:

• evaluative judgement
• intercultural competence
• self assessment
• peer assessment
• judgement process

Acknowledgement

This is to acknowledge that this study builds on the first author’s doctoral thesis. We would like to thank the student participants for contributing to this research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Jiahui Luo is a doctoral student in Education at the University of Hong Kong. Prior to joining HKU, she obtained her MPhil degree from the University of Cambridge. Her main research area is in learning-oriented assessment in higher education (in particular evaluative judgement, assessment literacy, and holistic competency assessment).

Dr. Cecilia Chan is an Associate Professor in the Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning and Faculty of Education at The University of Hong Kong (HKU). She leads research on assessment and feedback, experiential learning, technology enhanced learning and the development and assessment of 21st century skills.