“Leveling the Assessment Playing Field”

There have been several significant shifts in theological higher education in Australia over the past decade, not least among these is the shift in the student body. Overall, student numbers have decreased, and simultaneously, there has been an increase in older, part-time, and distance students. At Nazarene Theological College (NTC), we have also noticed a decrease in student ability. Incoming students appear to be less equipped in the areas of critical thinking, basic writing skills, and even time management. This deficiency in student capability has coincided with TEQSA requirements for increased student support. Most Theological institutions have ramped up their student support systems providing regular academic tutorials, targeted academic skills modules, and external helps like Studiosity and Grammarly. Nevertheless, these ‘add-on’ supports are not ideal for the current student body, who are already overstretched doing part-time studies in addition to their full-time jobs and family responsibilities.

Over the past year, NTC has sought to address these realities through a re-evaluation of our student assessments task/s (AT), which are then reinforced through teaching/learning activities (TLA) in various units.