Examinations and final theses

Planning or changing a module at the TU Hamburg requires a lead time of about one year. The "Hamburger Hochschulgesetz" stipulates that the type, number and sequence of examinations, as well as their duration and grading, must be specified in the respective examination regulations. This limits the flexibility with which examination concepts can be adapted. Planning an e-examination also requires a longer organisational lead time.

In addition to general conditions such as the number of participants and general criteria for the quality of the examination, the learning objectives of the course are relevant for the design of the examination: The most important things that students should be able to remember, apply or evaluate after the course should be reflected in the examination tasks (Eugster & Lutz, 2003).

If the objectives and form of the examination are clear, they are also a good guide - or alignment - for course planning and communication with students.

    What is the focus?
    What really needs to be understood?
    What is relevant to the examination?

⇒ The procedure illustrated here is particularly relevant to written examinations. However, it can be used in a modified form for other types of examination.

_{^{Illustration based on: Dubs, R. (2006). Besser schriftlich prüfen: Prüfungen valide und zuverlässig durchführen. In: Berendt, B.; Voss, H. P.; Wildt, J. (Hrsg.): Neues Handbuch Hochschullehre, S. 1-26. Stuttgart, Berlin: Raabe Verlag.}} 

Examinations

At the TU Hamburg, in addition to the usual summative forms of examination such as written or oral examinations and written assignments, there are also more specialised forms such as the practical examination (FFA). Various oral, written or practical tasks can be combined and taken at one or more different time points during the semester. Computer-based examinations (in the presence) and online examinations (digital participation from outside the TU Hamburg) are also possible.

Coursework

In addition to module examinations, the TU Hamburg offers compulsory or voluntary coursework (e.g. midterms, presentations, practical demonstrations), which can count up to 20% of the total grade. This can be useful, for example, if the full range of learning objectives cannot be reflected in the summative exam, or to encourage students to engage in continuous learning and exam preparation.

Students can also assess their own knowledge with self-assessment tests, such as those provided by MINTFIT. Teachers can also create their own tests on the ILIAS learning platform.

Supervising final theses is a complex teaching task. For many students at the TU Hamburg, the final thesis is their first academic text and they therefore need a lot of guidance. Teachers need good concepts for structured supervision of students as well as clarity about assessment standards. Typically, they support students in choosing a topic; provide feedback at different stages of the work process, e.g. literature research, structuring, data collection, laboratory activities or on individual parts of the text; motivate students in case of crises; and give feedback at the end.

It is important to strike a balance between supervision and fair assessment so that a high degree of independence is maintained in the writing of the thesis - especially if, for example, the results of the student's work are used in their own research.

More detailed information can be found in this description of the supervising procedure at TU Darmstadt.

It helps to reflect on how well students were prepared for the content and form of the examination, whether students had enough time (a longer time taken does not automatically indicate a lack of understanding), and whether the level of difficulty and selectivity were appropriate. An examination evaluation can be particularly useful for the first few attempts at an examination. Students are asked about their assessment after the exam has been completed. Statistical analysis of examination data can also be carried out.