Marketing students’ perceptions on study process and assessment: a multi-cohort study

Academics are charged with continuous curriculum improvement based, in part, on student feedback on assessment, as well as insights into student learning processes. With delivery of courses to domestic and international cohorts in multiple modes, this task is challenging, particularly for large first-year units. This paper reports on selected quantitative findings of a 2010 study on student assessment feedback and student learning processes using a modified two-factor study process questionnaire. The sample comprised 189 first-year business students of marketing within seven cohorts located in Australia and in China. The results show significant inter-cohort differences in students‟ preferences for assessment by final exam and by practical assessment, such as a marketing plan. Deep learning approaches were associated with a preference for a major marketing plan assessment, but student learning approaches did not significantly predict preferences for a final exam. These findings can be used to inform curriculum renewal toward more experiential learning within an international, blended learning context.