ABSTRACT
The purpose of assessment is essentially twofold: to provide feedback to learners and to indicate to learners and others a standard of achievement. A variation on institutionally-driven response is to offer learners the opportunity to negotiate several contracts of different length based upon their own perceived learning needs. After considering the expectations and assumptions which underpin the final assessment, advisers can assist learners by placing contractual expectations within a framework of overall course requirements. This could be done by identifying areas of knowledge or competency still to be covered and topics which could be addressed in future contracts. A survey of academic staff who has used the learning contract method over a number of years provided some clear indications of the types of things they expected in a completed learning contract. In determining assessment criteria there is a need to consider both the process and the product.
