The role of self-assessment in student grading

While the educational benefits of student self-assessment are being increasingly recognised and self-assessment procedures introduced into post-secondary courses of many different kinds, the use of self-assessment for grading purposes is a more controversial matter. Is there a role for student self-assessment in formal assessment proceedings? If there is to be a role, what should it be? This paper focuses on these questions and examines why a marking role for self-assessment should be considered and what evidence is available on the reliability of student-generated marks. The implications of these findings are considered and strategies are proposed to improve student markers reliability and to incorporate self-assessment indirectly into the formal assessment process. © 1989, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved.