Assessment Literacy and Feedback Design in Intensive Block Teaching: A Narrative Review with Implications for Sport Science Education

Abstract

Intensive block teaching, wherein modules are delivered over a period of two to six weeks as opposed to the conventional semester-long formats, is progressively gaining prominence within higher education in the United Kingdom. Nonetheless, assessment and feedback practices frequently remain tailored to longer, traditional durations. This narrative review consolidates five interconnected scholarly domains to address this incongruity: assessment literacy, feedback for learning, intensive/block teaching, applied and vocational discipline assessment, and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). While each domain is well established, there is limited research exploring their collective utilisation within condensed, practice-oriented environments such as sports science.

Drawing on evidence from 2000-2025, the review identifies how compressed timelines intensify challenges around formative engagement, feedback uptake, and the development of evaluative judgement. It argues that effective assessment in block formats requires intentional redesign rather than the compression of semester-based models. Key strategies include early and repeated assessment literacy activities, embedded dialogic feedback opportunities, multiple smaller assessment points, rapid formative cycles supported by technology, and authentic, workplace-aligned tasks that mirror professional competencies.

The review advocates for a set of evidence-based design principles to guide assessment and feedback practices in intensive sport science modules and emphasises the necessity for empirical, discipline-specific case studies to evaluate and enhance these principles. It concludes that, with intentional planning, block and intensive teaching can facilitate meaningful learning; however, its effectiveness is contingent upon structured feedback mechanisms, well-defined standards, and sustainable workload management.