Anonymous examination marking at University of Cape Town: the quest for an 'agonizing-free zone'
Journal Article
2006
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Studies in Higher Education
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Unisa Press
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University of Cape Town
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Abstract
Drawing on Bourdieu's theory of social practice, the author challenges common-sense notions of objectivity and subjectivity which inform assessment practice, and argues for assessment as a socially situated interpretive act. A case study of an engineering community of practice at a South African university illustrates the multiple subjectivities that shape assessors' interpretations of student performance. This case study contributes to an understanding of academic professional judgment as a 'double reading' - an iterative movement between different modes of knowledge which comprise the objective and the subjective. The author concludes with a brief discussion of the theoretical and practical implications of this for how academic communities of practice come to judge and how these judgments are validated.
Description
This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in South African Journal of Higher Education in 2006, available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/sajhe.v20i4.25682.
Reference:
Shay, S., Jones, B. 2006. Anonymous examination marking at University of Cape Town: the quest for an 'agonizing-free zone'. Studies in Higher Education.