Transparent Assessment: Strategies for Course Outlines

Following the 2025 UCalgary Conference on Postsecondary Learning and Teaching, the Taylor Institute’s educational development team gathered to share our key takeaways from the event. Common to all our reflections was the utility of keynote speaker Catherine J. Denial’s afternoon workshop, which brought her work in A Pedagogy of Kindness to life for attendees by encouraging them to re-imagine their course outlines with learning-focused kindness in mind. 

As we reflected, our focus narrowed to the power of transparent assessment, part of a framework developed by Mary-Ann Winkelmes (2025) called TILT (Transparency in Learning and Teaching), which “involves direct communication among educators and students about the methods of teaching and learning.” We began to wonder: What strategies could we offer instructors that encourage transparent assessment in the spirit of learning-focused kindness? And what could be incorporated into the course outline itself that underscores an instructor’s commitment to these concepts? 

Here, we offer snippets of a shared writing project currently in development that explores these ideas in five key areas: inclusivity, academic integrity, mental health and well-being, constructive alignment, and communication. 

Inclusivity

Inclusivity in postsecondary teaching and learning refers to the deliberate design of learning environments, curricula, and institutional practices that acknowledge, accommodate, and celebrate student diversity. What might this look like on a course outline? 

• Consider incorporating choice in the types of assessments you offer (e.g., a choice of topic, a choice of format).
• Keep student diversity in mind as you draft your course schedule. What flexibility can you build into your course to support students who may be impacted by these observances?

Learn more about inclusive course outlines here.

Academic Integrity

Rather than treating academic integrity as a policy statement buried at the end of the syllabus, instructors can use the outline as an opportunity to frame academic integrity as a shared commitment between instructor and students, one that supports both learning and personal growth. How might this look?

• Include examples in your course outline that show how integrity will be supported, such as opportunities for formative feedback, flexible assessments, or conversations about the ethical use of artificial intelligence and technology.
• Incorporate Indigenous academic integrity principles of respect, reciprocity, and relationality into the course outline to deepen this approach to integrity (Gladue, 2020). 

Learn more about academic integrity here.

Mental Health & Well-being

Research shows that uncertainty is one of the biggest contributors to student anxiety (Grupe and Nitschke, 2013). Uncertainty can set in for many reasons in our courses, relating to factors such as course structure, number of assessments, a lack of clarity on grading policies, or an unclear understanding of how students will develop mastery of the course content. How can instructors mitigate uncertainty?

• Provide clarity regarding course policies and expectations, such as attendance and how late work will be managed. Acknowledge the barriers students may face while emphasizing the positive value of the policies you’ve set.
• Actively destigmatize mental health challenges by adopting proactive language in your course outline. Robert Eaton et al. (2023) state that “just a bit of recognition” from the course instructor “of the reality of [our] students problems can destigmatize mental health challenges, open the door to the professor’s office, [and] increase the odds of a student getting the necessary help early in the semester” (103). 

Learn more about mental health and well-being here.

Constructive Alignment

Constructive alignment is a well-known principle of course design that seeks alignment between intended learning outcomes (ILOs), teaching and learning activities (TLAs), and assessment tasks (ATs) (Biggs, 2014). To be transparent about the purpose of your chosen assessments and the work you will do with your students in the classroom, consider building visual constructive alignment right into the course outline, using simple graphics or tables to illustrate your pedagogical intent. This table offers a simple, straightforward framework that you can customize to your course and incorporate directly into your course outline.

Communicating Transparency

At the beginning of a course, it's important to be intentional and transparent in your discussions with students about the information you include in your course outline, how students are to use this information productively, and why this is important for their success. How might we communicate this? 

• Consider learning strategies for socializing your course outline that incorporate the principles of TILT, including think-pair-share or jigsaw activities that promote individual reflection and processing as well as group sharing and application.
• Try Remi Kalir’s annotated syllabus activity, where students engage in “[a]sking clarifying questions; sharing opinions about readings and assignments; noting confusions and uncertainties; responding to policies; providing advice; and reflecting on what works and what can change” (My Annotated Syllabus Statement section, para. 1). 

Prioritizing transparency in both the creation of our course outline and how we communicate it to our students transforms this important tool from a standardized contract between educator and students to a living document that not only reflects our pedagogical intentions but also invites our students to bring their whole selves to the learning experience.