An exploration of nurse educators’ experiences of assessment in a multi-campus nursing college in the Eastern Cape Province

Abstract

Assessment is central to teaching and learning and yet it remains a challenge in most academic institutions. Both teachers and students experience assessment differently because of the different factors affecting them. In this study, internal institutional systems- centralization system of summative assessments, multiple learning sites within a single nursing college, individual assessor and student characteristics were investigated. The study used a qualitative exploratory research design using eight focus group interviews of fifty two nurse educators (n=52) to explore and describe their experiences of a centralised summative assessment in a multi campus nursing college. The study exposed major constraints within the nursing education system, the assessors’ and the students’ personalities challenges of the centralised multi-campus summative assessment process, ranging from questioning, invigilation, marking and scoring to cribbing and low nurse educator morality. Specifically low quality assessment questioning, large numbers of students, unreliable marking including biased marking, lack of proper supervision and support by academic managers resulting in burn out by nurse educators were observed. Recommendations of this study focussed on boosting nurse educators’ morale through motivational, support, professional development programmes improving resource availability at campuses and accountability of nurse educators as assessors and as specialists.