Complexity theory – an approach to assessment that can enhance learning and – more generally – could transform university management

The paper discusses the continued relevance of the Humboldtian model of university education and interprets it in terms of the two fundamental concepts of complexity and collegiality. These are then applied to issues of assessment in universities. Beyond issues arising directly from complexity and collegiality, present university failings in assessment also arise from the continuation of university malpractices relating to a better understanding of the professionalisation of teaching and learning, of teaching and learning as a form of scholarship (Wissenschaft)and of the relevance of students’ freedom to learn.