CASPAR has been in development for four years, since the conclusion of an FDTL project called GWAMP (Group Work and Assessment in Media Production). The FDTL project was funded by HEFCE to find and disseminate good practice in group work, with a particular emphasis on the media practice discipline. The project was led by Bournemouth University and ran from 2000-2004. In that time, seminars were held to discuss different approaches in institutions across the country. A re-occurring theme was 'peer assessment', and whilst many saw the benefits of peer assessment, there were lots of perceived problems and concerns with that form of assessment.

CASPAR was funded internally by Bournemouth University following the conclusion of GWAMP, as a continuation project to find an online solution for self and peer assessment that would answer the concerns raised by staff and students. An initial version was trialled by a pilot study in the Media School in 2006. Since then, Bournemouth University secured funding to establish the only Centre for Excellence in Media Practice (CEMP), and developed CASPAR into the comprehensive and stylish online 'one stop shop' for self and peer assessment that is available for you today.

For more background information about GWAMP, and to browse that project's materials and outcomes, click here. Many of the resources are useful alongside CASPAR for effective group working.