DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGES BUILDS CAPACITY OF ACADEMIC STAFF
The Department of Languages/ Linguistics/ Literary Studies/Theatre Arts and Media Studies has organised an Orientation programme for its academic staff in preparation for the commencement of the 2016/2017 academic session.
With the theme: “Effective Teaching and Evaluation: Developing Tests and Marking Schemes for the Humanities”, the event was geared towards equipping the staff of the department with relevant and current knowledge in the area of student’s evaluation.
Speaking on the topic as it affects the Theatre Arts and Media Studies Programme; Prof. Akor Amer stated that Theatre was a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers, typically actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage.
Prof. Akor Amer unveiling the techniques of evaluation in Theatre Arts
The Professor of Drama opined that in evaluating student’s performance marks should not be awarded to students without justification, stressing the need for lecturers to critically assess the practical demonstrations of students when it comes to theatre arts.
He said: ‘’you don’t just award a score to a student when there is no justification; character is the soul of performance. Students are to be assessed in artistic performance; seventy percent practical and thirty percent written; that is how you determine the difference between a theatre graduate and a manually trained person.’’
Dr. Ifeoma Nweze of the Linguistics Programme on her part averred that evaluation, assessment, test, examination are tools a teacher uses to find out if his instructional objectives have been attained by the students. She further stressed that examination also assesses the efficiency of the teacher, adding that examiners should be objective in awarding marks to avoid scandal.
Dr. Nweze delivering her paper during the event
She further noted that the method of teaching, course objectives, table of specification, rule of examination, timing, and marking guide are all factors that affect evaluation.
Espousing the topic further, Dr. Nnenna Nwosu, deliberated extensively on the imperatives of developing a marking scheme and grading, stressing that examiners should look out for pragmatic and linguistic competence, content, organization and language in students’ works during evaluation.
Head, Department of Languages/Linguistics/Literary Studies, Dr. Nnnena Nwosu speaking during the event
She Said: “There must be measures for getting an A, lecturers should not mark based on sentiment”, stating further that, “examination questions should cover the course contents to give equal opportunities to all students.”
The Director of Academic Planning, Prof. Kevin Nwogu on his part stated: ‘’examining a student is the power an examiner has and it should be used with lots of discretion; questions should be properly set to challenge the intellect of a student. Students should go the extra mile to be awarded an A”
‘’Don’t mark based on impression because the student has a good hand writing, flowery language etc. These are not the things you are looking for in the answers but the points. Our course is highly descriptive; you have to read through to get the points. We need to be factual not impressionistic, be detailed on your marking. We should produce graduates that can defend themselves. We should teach well, expect good performance and not exaggerate performance.”
Earlier, the event was declared open by the Dean, Faculty of Humanities, Prof. G.M.T. Emezue, who enjoined the staff to use the opportunity to acquire the relevant knowledge about evaluation, stressing that all hands must be on deck to ensure the Faculty and all its academic departments maintain excellence and integrity in all its activities.
Dean, Faculty of Humanities, Prof. Emezue addressing the participants during the programme