Events and training

Our UK exam board, OCR, will be launching a consultation on Natural History GCSE at a live online event on Thursday 4 June. Hear about the research and development of our proposal so far and from key supporters including the Natural History Museum, the Wildlife Trusts and young advocates from Teach the Future.

This interactive webinar will provide participants with a practical framework for designing effective multiple-choice questions and assessments for different educational purposes.

This interactive webinar will describe the different approaches to mark schemes, and provide practical guidance on how mark schemes can be optimised.

A101: Introducing the Principles of Assessment is a nine week, online course for examiners, assessment writers, professional bodies, teachers, lecturers and those working for exam boards/awarding organisations.

We are looking forward to hosting the upcoming SHAPE Education: Online events in collaboration with the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. Expect fast-paced, high energy events with expert speakers, fireside chats and ideation workshops.

A102: Introducing Assessment Practice has been designed to guide you through the practicalities of producing and delivering assessment, and to describe and explain important related issues.

The Postgraduate Advanced Certificate in Educational Studies: Educational Assessment is a professionally relevant qualification that will enable you to expand your knowledge and understanding of the principles and validation of assessment. This course will lead to a Postgraduate Advanced Certificate in Educational Studies.

This course will provide an introduction to the theory behind item response theory (IRT) and clear examples of when it is useful. It will include practical activities where participants will use interactive point-and-click tools built using the software package R to fit and interpret IRT models, as well as experiment with using IRT to help with test construction.

Understand the advantages and limitations of MCQs, and consider how to write and edit MCQs that are fit for purpose.

“It’s not fair” is a charge familiar to organisations and individuals who provide assessments which matter to those who take them. Influential statements about educational assessment have increasingly emphasised fairness, to the extent that some commentators (Worrell, 2016, p. 284) have seen the cornerstones of assessment theory as moving from the “big two” (Validity and Reliability) to the “big three”.