My article Rethinking Assessment explores the potential of innovative and creative assessments in history and the importance of diversifying assessment. Assessment forms an integral part of history education at all levels but how often do we stop and reflect on how and why we assess history and consider alternative approaches? The aim of my article is to share my insights into alternative forms of history assessment and encourage others to rethink assessment. It adds a subject specific perspective to the research on alternative forms of assessment. The focus is history assessment in UK Higher Education, but the context, discussion and recommendations have wider relevance extending beyond disciplinary, educational sector and geographical boundaries. It should be relevant to anyone involved with history assessment and those interested in making assessment a more meaningful process.

I argue that alternative forms of assessment matter, especially in text-heavy subjects such as history, as they provide a different way to assess historical skills and assess different ways to communicate historical research. The article begins by establishing the rationale for rethinking assessment, including history specific perspectives. It then focuses on a case study of creative and public history assessments in Higher Education using practitioner research. This includes student perceptions and experiences of these assessments within a history degree. It concludes by exploring the wider implications of the research. Alternative and innovative approaches can make assessment a more effective and meaningful process within a subject specific context, helping to develop historical knowledge, understanding and skills, transferable skills and different ways of communicating historical research. The evidence demonstrates students value having different ways to be assessed, enabling them to develop or demonstrate the same core historical skills as other assessments, together with transferable skills and attributes. Many students reflected that this assessment enabled them to better understand the module content, be more engaged and demonstrate what they knew and understood more effectively.

Providing space to rethink assessment in subject specific contexts is crucial. Alternative assessment won’t be everyone’s preferred choice and nor should it simply replace existing assessment types to become the dominant mode of assessment. However, as part of a varied assessment diet, these assessments can foster curiosity and develop a wide range of historical competencies and transferable skills.

Publishing my research in the History Education Research Journal was an opportunity to provide space to rethink assessment and encourage conversations between universities and schools to shape the future of history assessment. As an open access journal focused on history education with an international readership, HERJ provides an excellent opportunity to engage with practitioners in different contexts.

Rethinking assessment: the potential of ‘innovative’ or ‘creative’ assessments in history by Sarah Holland (University of Nottingham, UK) is published in History Education Research journal, volume 21.

Sarah Holland is Associate Professor in History at the University of Nottingham. She is a Senior Fellow of Advance HE and Co-Convenor of History UK. Sarah is currently leading two History UK working groups: Assessment and Collaborations between schools and universities, and the History UK Disability and History project. Her pedagogical research explores assessment, student engagement, disability, collaborative community engagement and the use of place and space in teaching. Sarah is a historian of health, disability and the countryside.