Department of
Assessment and Evaluation
Documentation and Academic Structure of the Department
The Department of Assessment and Evaluation examines the theory and practice of testing, grading, and examination design — how educational outcomes are validly measured at scale, distinct from Faculty III’s Department of Developmental Assessment, which studies psychological developmental instruments, and Faculty V’s Department of Educational Psychology, which supports individual struggling students directly.
Where the Department of Curriculum Studies examines what is taught, the Department of Assessment and Evaluation examines how educational institutions verify that it has actually been learned — and the substantial risk that a poorly designed assessment can measure the wrong thing entirely, or disadvantage learners for reasons unrelated to what they have actually learned.
This document establishes the Department’s complete academic and institutional documentation architecture across seven structural layers.
Foundational Framework
Governing Field. Human Formation, examined through the discipline of Assessment and Evaluation — the systematic study of testing, grading, and examination design, and the validity and equity of the instruments used to measure educational outcomes at scale.
Central Premise. An assessment that does not actually measure what it claims to measure produces confident-sounding numbers that mislead everyone who relies on them — the student, the teacher, and the institution alike. An assessment that inadvertently disadvantages a group of learners for reasons unrelated to their actual learning is not measuring achievement; it is measuring something else and calling it achievement.
Foundational Theoretical Anchor. The Department operates under the Principle of Educational Equity and Intellectual Independence established by the Department of Education, and coordinates closely with the Department of Developmental Assessment (Faculty III, Principle of Validated Application) and the Department of Educational Psychology (Faculty V), applying validated, equitable assessment standards to large-scale educational testing specifically.
Programme List
The Department offers a complete academic ladder from foundational study through doctoral research.
Delivery Framework
The Department is delivered online-first, using structured cohort-based study supported by Module Specifications, Study Guides, Teaching Manuals, and Assessment Briefs for every unit, consistent with the Institute’s established production standard.
Curriculum
The BA (Honours) Assessment and Evaluation curriculum proceeds across four levels, numbered AE101 through AE111, following the Institute’s core pedagogical standard: scaffolded progression from structured instruction toward fully independent, validated assessment design.
| Level | Focus | Modules |
|---|---|---|
| Level 4 | Foundations of Assessment and Evaluation; the measurement–proxy distinction; introduction to validity and reliability | AE101–AE104 |
| Level 5 | High-stakes testing design; comparative assessment systems; ethics of equitable assessment | AE105–AE107 |
| Level 6 | Independent assessment validation research; capstone applied test design; specialization electives | AE108–AE109 |
| Level 7 (MA) | Advanced assessment theory; assessment and Human Formation; research methods; dissertation | AE110–AE111 |
Key Pedagogical Standard. Every module moves the learner from structured instruction toward the independent capacity to design and validate assessments that measure genuine learning without disadvantaging any group for reasons unrelated to it — no learner exits the programme deploying a high-stakes test without evidence it measures what it claims to measure.
Research Fields and Centres
The Department maintains the following primary research fields:
Centre for Assessment and Evaluation
The Department’s standing research centre, coordinating cross-domain research with the Department of Education, the Department of Developmental Assessment (Faculty III), and the Department of Curriculum Studies.
Assessment and Ethics
Assessment in the Department evaluates a learner’s competence in test design, validation, and equity auditing — never a reward for a test design that is easy to administer at scale while failing to measure genuine learning or disadvantaging particular groups.
Because assessment outcomes can determine a learner’s educational and professional future, the Department applies a dedicated integrity principle.
Award Titles
Public-Facing Department Page
The Department of Assessment and Evaluation is where the Institute studies how educational outcomes are validly measured — and refuses to deploy any test for high-stakes decisions without evidence it measures what it claims to. As a sibling Department of Faculty V, it holds testing to the same rigor the Institute expects of every other measurement it relies upon.
Learners join a structured academic pathway from Certificate through PhD, moving from guided foundational study toward independent assessment design and validation, supported at every level by the Institute’s full documentation standard: Module Specifications, Study Guides, Teaching Manuals, and Assessment Briefs.
Permanent Department Documentation Order
The permanent documentation order of the Department, restated for reference:
Delivery Framework Detail
Programme Specification I — Certificate in Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification II — Diploma in Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification III — BA Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification IV — BA (Honours) Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification V — Postgraduate Certificate in Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification VI — Postgraduate Diploma in Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification VII — MA Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification VIII — Specialized Master’s in Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification IX — MRes Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification X — MPhil Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification XI — PhD Assessment and Evaluation
Programme Specification XII — Professional Practice Certificate in Assessment Design Support
Summary Programme Table
A consolidated summary of all twelve programmes offered by the Department.
| Award | Abbreviation | Duration | Credits | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certificate in Assessment and Evaluation | CertAE | 6–12 months | 60 credits | ₦450,000 |
| Diploma in Assessment and Evaluation | DipAE | 1 year | 120 credits | ₦850,000 |
| BA Assessment and Evaluation | BA AE | 3 years | 360 credits | ₦2,400,000 |
| BA (Honours) Assessment and Evaluation | BA(Hons) AE | 4 years | 480 credits | ₦3,100,000 |
| Postgraduate Certificate in Assessment and Evaluation | PGCert AE | 6 months | 60 credits | ₦900,000 |
| Postgraduate Diploma in Assessment and Evaluation | PGDip AE | 9 months | 120 credits | ₦1,600,000 |
| MA Assessment and Evaluation | MA AE | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦2,900,000 |
| Specialized Master’s in Assessment and Evaluation | MA AE (Spec.) | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦3,200,000 |
| MRes Assessment and Evaluation | MRes AE | 1 year (FT) / 2 years (PT) | 180 credits | ₦3,400,000 |
| MPhil Assessment and Evaluation | MPhil AE | 2 years (FT) / 3 years (PT) | 240 credits | ₦5,600,000 |
| PhD Assessment and Evaluation | PhD AE | 3–4 years (FT) / 5–6 years (PT) | 360 credits | ₦9,100,000+ |
| Professional Practice Certificate in Assessment Design Support | PPC ADS | 6–9 months | 60 credits (practice-based) | ₦1,100,000 |
Credit Framework
The Department applies the Institute’s standard credit framework: one credit represents approximately 10 notional learning hours, inclusive of guided instruction, independent study, assessment design practicum where applicable, and assessment.
| Level | Credits (Full Level) | Notional Learning Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Level 4 (Certificate/Year 1) | 120 | 1,200 |
| Level 5 (Diploma/Year 2) | 120 | 1,200 |
| Level 6 (BA Year 3 / Honours Year) | 120–240 | 1,200–2,400 |
| Level 7 (Postgraduate/MA) | 180 | 1,800 |
| Level 8 (MPhil/PhD, research credit) | 240–360 | 2,400–3,600 |
Assessment Validity Ethics Principle
Because assessment outcomes can determine a learner’s educational and professional future, the Department’s ethical commitments govern every module, practicum, and research activity it authorizes.
This principle governs curriculum design, assessment design practicum, assessment methodology, and all research conducted across the Department, and stands alongside the Principle of Educational Equity and Intellectual Independence (Department of Education), the Principle of Learner Data Dignity (Department of Learning Sciences), the Principle of Curricular Transparency and Inclusion (Department of Curriculum Studies), and the Principle of Non-Stigmatizing Educational Support (Department of Educational Psychology) as the fifth ethics principle documented within Faculty V.
Tuition Principle
Tuition for every programme is published in full above, with no undisclosed fees. Where a learner’s circumstances warrant it, the Department may offer needs-based tuition adjustment, cohort scholarships, or staged payment plans, at the discretion of the Institute’s admissions and finance offices.
Tuition figures reflect the Institute’s standard credit-based tuition model and are reviewed annually.
Final Delivery and Access Declaration
The Department of Assessment and Evaluation is delivered online-first to maximize access for learners regardless of geographic location, with structured cohort support, complete documentation for every module, and a clear pathway from Certificate through PhD. No learner shall be required to relocate to access any taught programme offered by this Department.
Final Structural Declaration
The Department of Assessment and Evaluation stands as a sibling Department of Faculty V, holding the standard of validity and equity that every measurement of educational outcomes across the Institute must meet. Every award, module, and research activity documented above proceeds through the Department’s permanent structural chain:
This chain governs the Department of Assessment and Evaluation now and permanently, coordinated with, and answerable to, the Principle of Educational Equity and Intellectual Independence held by the Department of Education.