It is increasingly apparent that the ATAR is not the most effective way to measure a student’s readiness for university. We knew this prior to COVID-19 but, like many inequities, the current pandemic has cast a pre-existing problem into sharp relief. And opened up an opportunity to accelerate change.
During the COVID-19 crisis many students have been placed at an academic disadvantage, due to their socio-economic status and inability to access the resources required to learn while at home.
ATAR measurement relies heavily on a student’s ability to learn and regurgitate information. This is not a fair or accurate representation of a student’s ability to succeed beyond school. We need to take a more holistic approach to measuring a student’s preparedness for higher education.
Jobs of the future call for 21st century skills – critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, etc. These are the capabilities we should be considering when offering places at our universities.
The U@Uni Academy was developed in response to this idea. Beginning at the end of Year 10, the Academy introduces senior high school students from UTS’s partner schools to the university experience, with tutoring and additional support to develop skills to succeed at university and beyond. Students who successfully complete the program will be offered a place at UTS. While developing familiarity and capacity for university, students’ are assessed for entry.
At first glance the Academy seems like a relatively normal alternative pathway into the university. But its uniqueness lies in the way we assess our students.
Looking beyond ATAR
Using the CAPRI framework, and the REVIEW online tool (developed by Dr Darrall Thompson at UTS) we measure and assess our students against 21st century skills and attributes, alongside general capabilities outlined in the national curriculum. Intentionally looking beyond the one-dimensional outcome of an ATAR mark.
Students engage in self-reflection on their progress, provide feedback to their peers on group tasks, and receive ongoing support from Faculty coordinators and mentors. This data informs a student’s ‘learner profile’, used to assess their progress in the program.
The Academy assessment framework draws many of its outcomes from CAPRI themes, namely:
- initiative
- growth
- reflection
- communication
- presentation and information literacy
It also questions the focus on high-stakes, narrow metrics of success to determine student value, focussing instead on innovative competency-based, developmental assessment.
Levelling the playing field
Perhaps most importantly, the program is offered to students who are not already on a trajectory to receive the required selection rank for entry into UTS (based on ATAR), but who have demonstrated potential to succeed at university through other criteria – commitment, mindset, passion, and various 21st century skills and capabilities – and who have evidenced attainment.
The world we live in is supremely unequal. But it is the responsibility of public institutions, including universities, to seek remedies to this injustice. The first step must be ensuring that we are inclusive in selecting our student cohort. It is unacceptable that any young person in Australia be cut off from receiving an education befitting their potential due to socio-economic disadvantage.
While inequalities still exist we must be intentional, innovative and adaptive in finding new methods to overcome disadvantage. We must experiment with new approaches, and never accept the status quo as it is.
Education is the great equaliser. Access to education is a fundamental human right. If we allow ourselves to measure academic success purely on ranks and numbers, so many excellent students will miss out on the opportunity to be the future leaders they were born to be.