Thinking About Using Cadmus?

It’s a tough decision to make — we get it! Just in case you’re not quite sure if Cadmus is the right fit for you, we’ve brought in the experts to tell you what they think. Coming from a range of backgrounds, assessment types, and class sizes, there's no one better placed to talk about using Cadmus than teachers that have just run Cadmus Assignments themselves. We chatted to a few of our users to find out who they'd recommend Cadmus to and what advice they'd give to new users.

First things first, who did our users think would benefit from using Cadmus?

The consensus was, well… almost anyone. If writing is a part of your unit or you’re interested in improving the way that students write, Cadmus could be the tool for you. 

"It's for any unit where writing is the focal point... It's for the academic that wants to change for the better."

— Andrew Ewing, ECU

In particular, it's a good fit if you're interested in giving formative feedback or providing extra assistance for students to develop academic skills (hello first-years 👋 ). With referencing resources available in Cadmus as students work, it's an effective way to provide in-context support to students at the moments it matters most.

What did everyone like about using Cadmus?

For our users, using Cadmus opened up a lot of opportunities. From making scaffolded assessment designs easier to manage, to saving teachers from lugging hard copy lab books home for marking — Cadmus made it possible for teachers to easily implement their desired assessment improvements online.

In particular, teachers liked that the Cadmus Student Environment was a "one-stop-shop" for assessment. Having a single space for students to access instructions and resources, and then complete their work, made the assessment process smoother for everyone involved. They also felt that Cadmus' simplified formatting helped students focus on their content and the process of completing an assignment.

“It's a significantly more streamlined experience and makes it easier to provide tips, hints, and guidance. It definitely cuts down your admin work if you set it up well."

— Andrew Zur, The University of Melbourne

Cadmus Learning Analytics was another favourite feature among our users. With access to information on how the class was working, teachers were able to understand engagement with the task and take action to keep students on track. It encouraged teachers to reflect on their assessment design and the skills that students needed to develop. 

Speaking of assessment design, did our users have any tips for designing Cadmus assignments?

1. Encourage students to use the checklists in Cadmus - they’re an excellent way for students to plan and follow a structured process for completing their assignment. Learn more about scaffolding

2. Think about how and when you’re giving feedback - if you’re using Cadmus to break up or scaffold a task, consider providing more in-depth feedback early on while students can reflect on it and improve. You can even try using Turnitin quick marks or a table of common feedback to speed up your marking workflow. 

3. Consider the skills students need to complete the assignment successfully and try to provide them with opportunities to develop these skills. This could take the form of activities in class or resources added to the Cadmus Assignment.

Finally, what advice did our users have for anyone considering using Cadmus?

Just go for it! Our users all agreed that the support from Cadmus was fantastic. If you understand the functionality of the tool and whether it's a good fit for your assessment, it's simple to pick up. According to Trisha Downing, a Teaching Specialist at The University of Melbourne, using Cadmus in a 2000+ student class couldn't have been smoother. "Our teaching team had a very positive experience, and it was very beneficial to the students. I haven't had many experiences with new technology that have been this good."

Many of our users also encouraged anyone thinking about trying Cadmus to speak to someone that's used it. Whether that was for assessment design ideas, practical tips, or just to feel a bit more confident about it all. If you’re interested in learning more about how teachers are using Cadmus, check out our Teacher Stories. Or feel free to get in touch, the Cadmus team is always happy to chat!