Sharp, A; Datt, K H --- "Proposals for assessment in tax teaching" [2011] LegEdDig 2; (2011) 19(1) Legal Education Digest 5

• Proposals for assessment in tax teaching

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Proposals for assessment in tax teaching

A Sharp and K Datt

Journal of the Australasian Tax Teachers Association, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2010, pp46-65

To equip students for working life it is essential that we instil a culture of learning and make our students information literate. It is essential that they are able to think laterally and operate in the real world. In seeking to achieve these goals Atax and the University of Auckland strive to provide a basis for students to become critical thinkers, to enable them to continue their learning and understanding and maintain their excitement for their discipline for the rest of their lives.

As a benchmark for the effectiveness of their teaching and learning methods, Atax and the University of Auckland must ensure that the corporate and professional world looks to their graduates as employees of choice. Assessment forms an important tool in achieving this goal.

If teachers of taxation law are to equip their students with the attributes necessary for professional practice, to become critical thinkers and problem solvers as part of their lifelong learning, then it is important to examine the assessment methods used.

Ramsden identifies the link between different ways of thinking about assessment and the quality of student learning. He notes that the conventional view of assessment is seen primarily as a way of assigning grades, which develops in students cynicism and negativity towards the subject matter and superficial approaches to studying. He advocates that teachers should choose assessment methods that are based on goals for student learning where students can demonstrate how much they understand rather than achieving a single score for comparative purposes.

According to Brown there should be a clear alignment between expected learning outcomes, what is taught and learnt, and the knowledge and skills being assessed. Lack of alignment is a major reason why students adopt a surface approach to learning. This also often results from such institutional policies that require assessment results to be reported in percentages or ‘marks’, or require results to be distributed along a predetermined curve.

An essential feature of assessment is the feedback that accompanies a task that has been assessed. Feedback enables teachers to adapt and adjust their teaching and students to adjust their learning strategies. Generic feedback gives clarification of misconceptions on a broad scale with the advantage of having as a component a comparison with peer responses. From a learning perspective feedback must be timely, perceived as relevant, meaningful and encouraging, and offer suggestions for improvement. Often, it seems, students do not read the feedback they receive or use it to improve future performance and/or understanding of concepts they have failed to grasp. It is therefore necessary to teach students how to use the feedback they receive and to check to see whether they have applied the feedback in current assignments.

The vast majority of Atax students are studying part-time while in full-time employment. Students demonstrably need to be more disciplined when studying part-time, in a delivery mode that is not entirely face to face and balancing work and family commitments.

The Atax student population is diverse. They are located throughout Australia and overseas.

As tax is multidisciplinary, Atax adopts a multidisciplinary approach to its teaching and uses not only lawyers but also accountants and economists to deliver its teaching program.

Unlike the practice at the Open University, Atax does not have students divided into tutorial groups, but self-help groups are encouraged and a list of willing persons is placed on a peer group list and is published in part to facilitate student contact and in part to encourage group work. Members of self-help groups communicate either by direct contact between students or via the internet-based platform used to deliver teaching materials.

Distance students do not have the advantage of being able to resolve misconceptions and problems promptly with their teacher. Therefore, the formative aspect of the learning experience should be designed to give these students more opportunities to evaluate their progress through self-directed activities.

Students receive with each course paper-based study materials that are designed to enhance effective self-directed distance learning and provide opportunities for self -assessment .Their purpose is to stimulate deep-level as opposed to surface-level learning and to give students the ability to study at times and for periods convenient to them. The American Distance Education Consortium has suggested that study materials be modular, stand-alone units that are compatible with short bursts of learning. The Atax study materials are formatted this way.

Atax courses are designed to meet the needs of students and to cater to the needs of employers that require specific skills from graduates. Primarily teachers seek to instil a sense of excitement in students about their chosen discipline to enable them to continue to ‘maximise their understanding of things, read widely, discuss issues and reflect on what they have seen and heard’.

Students must be able to communicate both orally and in writing. Students must be able to undertake complex searches on a multitude of databases to ensure that they develop a thorough understanding of the law (both legislative and common) upon which they rely.

Finally students must be able to work in groups and have the ability to communicate with their peers and others in such a way as to be able to convey sometimes complex facts, issues and arguments in a way that is easily understood by the target audience.

Before the semester commences: students are invited to attend an orientation day at which students are given details about the program, research tools, Blackboard (formerly Web CT) and information designed to help them in the transition to university study.

Subsequently, study materials are couriered to the student. The course materials are divided into modules and refer to learning objectives and key concepts and contain material on each aspect to be covered in that module. Each module also has a reference to suggested and prescribed readings as well as activities designed to test the student’s assimilation of matter contained in the study materials. Suggested answers to the activities are provided. The basis on which assignments are assessed form part of this material. Each module builds on the preceding one.

All of the above is designed to manage students’ expectations, inform them about the skills required and, assessment criteria used, describe how the course material and skills fit into the ‘tax’ environment, and explain how the things learnt in the program will be used on a daily basis in their practice as tax professionals.

Audio conferences (each is a telephone link between lecturer and students scheduled for 90 minutes per session generally four times a semester, although some lecturers schedule five audio conferences for specific courses) are used to enable students to clarify any issues. Their prime function is to facilitate a discussion between the students themselves and the students and the lecturer. Prior to assignments and exams the assessment criteria are paraphrased and reinforced at these conferences. Audio conferences are not compulsory and are not assessed, but they will greatly assist the student in the formative assessment process used at Atax.

A full day ‘regional class’ is held once each semester as an intensive review of the skills to be acquired by the students and the technical issues of that course. Lecturers travel to all the main centres in Australia, when student numbers warrant it, to deliver these classes. During these classes examples are given of what are considered good and bad responses to assignment questions. Again students are given an opportunity to raise issues that are of concern to them. Where student numbers do not justify a regional class in a centre, it will be held by way of an audio conference that lasts about three to four hours.

In all communications with students they are encouraged to discuss any questions or queries with colleagues, peers, superiors or the lecturer to ensure a proper understanding of issues. The availability of the lecturer is stressed. This is in part an attempt to allow the students to feel part of a larger group and to help them communicate with peers and colleagues.

Atax takes the view that assessment forms a vital element in determining if students have achieved, and assisting students to achieve, required outcomes. Assessment is generally by way of two assignments and a final exam. Assignments usually consist of problems where students must demonstrate an ability to apply technical knowledge utilising acquired skills. Stress is placed on word limits in assignments as this avoids undue prolixity and ultimately assists students in composing clear and concise documents in a professional context.

The exam contains both problems and essays where an understanding of technical issues must be demonstrated.

The assessment criteria for assignments include students having to identify the issues and material facts, evidence a critical mind at work, tie arguments back to the problem and to produce a properly referenced, concise, logical and a linguistically well-written paper. The assessment criteria appear before each assignment topic. Certain of these criteria are emphasised in each audio conference and the regional class. They also form part of the course profile in the study guides.

For Halpern and Hakel ‘practice at retrieval’ is essential. This means that students must be given as many opportunities as possible to apply technical knowledge using the essential skills acquired over a period of time. Atax follows this approach in both its support and assessment functions. Students are given many opportunities to practice their skills and the application of their knowledge.

An important part of the assessment process is what takes place in the audios, regional classes and other contacts with students. Here students are encouraged to raise issues and voice opinions that may not coincide with those of the lecturer provided they can support those views with reference to authority. The discussion itself ultimately assists students in the formative assessment process in that it stimulates a critical analysis of cases and issues and facilitates students communicating their ideas in a verbal but logical fashion. These opportunities to practise the application of skills and knowledge help the student attain the course objectives.

The assessment tasks, both formative and summative, require students to use the same competencies, or combinations of knowledge, skills and attitudes that they need to apply in professional life. Gulikers et al suggest that for authentic assessment students need to integrate knowledge, skills and attitudes as professionals do. This means the assessment task should resemble real-life situations utilising the same skills and knowledge a professional would use.

The University of Auckland teaches taxation to students who require New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA) accreditation as part of their Bachelor of Commerce degree. As is the case with Atax, study materials are handed out in self-contained sections which incorporate both concepts and extracts from the relevant case law.

Internal assessment consists of three parts. First, students learn about tax research through an electronic based series of workbooks. This is followed by an online test, which they must complete in their own time within two weeks. The test is not meant to be failed and students are allowed up to 10 attempts to achieve the passing grade. The research component was introduced to make students aware of some of the electronic resources available on taxation law that they would need in professional practice.

Second, the introductory taxation course includes seven tutorial classes of one hour per week. Students are assessed on attendance and participation at the tutorial classes held over the semester. The tutorials have set questions on various key topics and require students to apply their knowledge of the case law and legislation to the tutorial questions. The scenarios given require critical thinking by the students and are linked to authentic situations that the students will face in the professional world.

The third internal assessment component is a mid-semester test. The test question(s) are made available three weeks ahead of the actual test date, allowing students time to research their answers which they then write under test conditions. There is also a series of four, five marks per question, multiple-choice pop-quiz (MCPQ) tests that can be marked electronically. The best two marks of the four MCPQ tests are included in the final assessment mark.

For assessment purposes the above internal component is worth 30 per cent and the final exam is worth 70 per cent of the final mark. The exam has a practical component where students must inter alia complete a tax return and explain why, in their opinion, income and deductions are declared (or not) as well as 10 multiple-choice questions and two problem questions.

The test assessment method in introductory taxation underwent some changes in 2008 with the introduction of an Assurance of Learning rubric testing system in the University of Auckland Business School. The Assurance of Learning committee, set up in the business school and made up of representatives from the various departments including commercial law, developed a series of rubrics in order to evaluate the standard of student assessment in writing, ethics, critical thinking and knowledge.

Consequently, there has been greater emphasis given in the taxation lectures to introducing ethical principles and several of the taxation tutorial questions pose ethical issues for discussion with students. Teaching ethical principles has also been incorporated into the stage one and stage two commercial law courses. However, it is too early yet to evaluate the success of the new strategy on student understanding of ethical principles in taxation.

Atax, in contrast, includes two general education courses and an ethics course for students to undertake as part of their degree. Since the 2008 review, the University of Auckland allows students who are undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce degree to enrol in up to two university papers from any other faculty as part of general education; however, it has no specific ethics or general education course for students. There has been a recognition that general education complements the more specialised learning undertaken in a student’s chosen field of study and that it contributes to the flexibility which graduates are increasingly required to demonstrate.

Employers repeatedly point to the complex nature of the modern work environment and advise that they highly value graduates with the skills provided by a broad general education as well as the specialised knowledge provided in the more narrowly defined degree programs.

Ethics and general education courses form an essential component in the skills that need to be acquired by tax graduates, so it is encouraging to see the various commercial law courses at the University of Auckland since 2009 including the ethical component in their courses. Widespread teaching of ethical principles in all business courses could ensure students have a greater awareness of ethics prior to them entering the workforce, making the training task simpler for professional bodies.

Having reviewed the literature and the methods adopted by both Atax and the University of Auckland, the authors now seek to utilise this knowledge in suggesting what in their opinion could facilitate enhanced teaching and learning outcomes when teaching tax. This process seeks to utilise the best features used by both Atax and the University of Auckland to ensure students achieve their potential and become valued members of professional teams.

At the commencement of each course students should be given a set of materials that are modular, stand-alone units compatible with short bursts of learning. Each module should build on those that precede them and contain self-assessment tasks with suggested solutions or approaches to enable students to determine for themselves whether they have gained an understanding of key concepts and achieved the learning objectives of each module. These study materials should be supplemented either by formal lectures and tutorials or, as is the case at Atax, audio conferences and regional classes.

Lecturers should be available at fixed times (and if possible at other times as well) to clarify and explain issues students find challenging. Where possible, the lecturers should seek to understand the individual make-up (characteristics) of each student and especially be alert to any limitations students have set for themselves. This of course is far more difficult in a distance environment where there is little or no face-to-face contact with students. The support process is fundamental to an effective assessment program and forms an essential component of the formative assessment process.

There should be consequences in the event of students failing to comply with course requirements such as reading or submission of assignments on time. For example, at Atax late submission of assignments results in a progressive penalty (more than 10 days late results in a 100 per cent penalty not of the mark obtained but of the total available marks for that assignment).

The use of bell curves and similar devices should be avoided in determining marks of students. They should be assessed on that which they produce not on some formula that gives an artificial or contrived result.

As part of the formative assessment process for a tax program there should be at least one ethics course to enable students to operate effectively in the workplace plus at least one and possibly more general education courses unrelated to their program to ensure a well-rounded graduate able to function in the real world with an ability to think beyond the narrow confines of their speciality. Again these criteria may seem beyond a pure assessment regime, but in the authors’ opinion assessment is not limited to one course in a program; it should be holistic, designed to ensure students are able to function effectively in their chosen profession.

Assessment tasks must include a requirement that students perform as they would in the professional environment – utilising lateral thinking, critical analysis, research skills and both oral and written communication skills. In order to facilitate and enhance research and communication skills, Atax has a moot as one of the assessment tasks in its undergraduate program.

Exams must be well timed so that they sample content well but allow most students to finish. They must afford all students the opportunity of doing well but allow the ‘good student’ to excel.

All assessment tasks should be designed to simulate real-life examples that must be approached as professionals would approach the specific issue. For all mid-semester assessment tasks, whether formative or summative, there should be early and sufficient feedback to enable students to understand not only the areas in which they have gone wrong but also to understand what steps need to be taken to improve. Subsequent assessments should, in so far as time permits, seek to ensure that early feedback has been assimilated.

Finally, all assessment tasks must test each student’s ability to understand and apply concepts and principles. Simple regurgitation of information will not adequately prepare the student for professional life.

The development of appropriate and carefully constructed assessments, support materials to assist student learning and opportunities to develop understanding and skills must be a priority in any course offered in the study of taxation law. An important aspect of this assessment regime is that sufficient teacher support is given to students to enhance and encourage the learning process.