Meta–Evaluation in the Higher Education Agenda

Abstract

Based on the impact of learning assessment on educational processes, the idea of assessing learning evaluations to turn evaluation into a tool for change in education becomes relevant (Ravela,2009). This article intends to communicate the methodological design to apply a meta–evaluation on two subjects, English for Special Purposes and Basic Mathematics, which belong to the Accounting studies at Universidad Nacional del Litoral. The investigative objective is to evaluate the learning evaluations, i.e. meta–evaluation, in the above mentioned subjects to reach two goals. On the one hand, identify the reinforcement or changes necessary to improve the quality of the evaluation processes so that they become evaluation as learning, evaluation for learning and evaluation of learning. On the other hand, determine the epistemological, didactic, cultural and technological conditions adequate to promote the improvement of teaching and learning in those subjects. The complete methodological design has the characteristics of an illuminative evaluation (Parlett and Hamilton, 1972), which assumes a research line oriented to discovery and application (Arnal et ál., 1992). The meta–evaluation design presented here can become an institutional strategy for academic decision–making that envisages the continuous construction of a culture of self–reflection on learning quality.