Transcript We Could Use Your Help - Learning Outcomes Assessment
NILOA: Tracking the Status of Outcomes Assessment in the U.S.
George Kuh
SAIR
New Orleans, LA September 26, 2010
“Colleges… do so little to measure what students learn between freshman and senior years. So doubt lurks: how much does a college education – the actual teaching and learning that happens on campus – really matter?”
David Leonhardt,
NYTimes
, Sept 27, 2009
Advance Organizers
What kind of information about student learning and institutional effectiveness is compelling and useful for: (a) guiding improvement efforts?
(b) responding to accountability demands? What can be done to motivate encourage faculty and staff to use assessment results to enhance student learning?
Advance Organizers
What are the obstacles that must be addressed for IR to help advance the assessment agenda?
What could you and/or NILOA do to overcome these challenges?
Overview
The current context for assessment The NILOA agenda: activities and products Questions to ponder
Context
Global Competitiveness in Degree Attainment
The New Majority and Demographic Gaps
Questionable Levels of Student Performance
In a Most Challenging Fiscal Environment …
We Need Higher Levels of Student Attainment at an Affordable Cost
Assessment 2010
Greater emphasis on student learning outcomes and evidence that student performance measures up
Assessment 2010
Greater emphasis on student learning outcomes and evidence that student performance measures up
Demands for comparative measures
Increased calls for transparency -- public disclosure of student and institutional performance
Assessment “technology” has improved markedly, but still is insufficient to document learning outcomes most institutions claim
Far too little is known about assessment practices on campuses around the country
NILOA’s mission is to document SLO assessment work, identify and disseminate best practices, and support institutions in their assessment efforts
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
FUNDERS
Lumina Foundation for Education
Carnegie Corporation of New York
The Teagle Foundation
NATIONAL ADVISORY PANEL
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
National surveys
Survey asked chief academic officers at all accredited 2 & 4 year colleges and universities about their assessment practices.
Survey report
“More Than You Think, Less Than We Need”
released October, 2009
Report Summary
1.
Perhaps more assessment underway than some acknowledge or wish to believe 2.
More attention needed to using and reporting assessment results 3.
Involving faculty is a major challenge 4.
More investment likely needed to move from data to improvement
According to Provosts, what is the driving force for assessment?
a. Institutional Commitment to Improvement b. Accreditation “high importance” 85% Regional 80% Specialized c. Faculty & Staff Interest d. Governing Board Mandate e. None of the above
Report Summary
1.
Perhaps more assessment underway than some acknowledge or wish to believe 2.
More attention needed to using and reporting assessment results 3.
Involving faculty is a major challenge 4.
More investment likely needed to move from data to improvement 5.
Accreditation is a major force shaping assessment
Assessment driven more by accreditation and commitment to improve than external pressures from government or employers
Accreditation tops the list for
uses
of assessment data
Regional accreditors cite deficiencies in student learning outcomes assessment with greater frequency
Middle States
- 2/3 of institutions have follow-up; number one reason being assessment
NEASC
- 80% of institutions asked for follow-up on student learning outcomes assessment
HLC
- 7 out of 10 institutions are being monitored; the vast majority for student learning outcomes assessment.
Attention to transparency in student learning outcomes assessment is growing.
Middle States, HLC, SACS consider transparency an integrity issue NEASC increased requests for “candor” by asking for student learning goals and requirements to be published so that they are “readily available” WASC-ACCJC ask every school to publish their student learning outcomes as eligibility requirement
NILOA 2010 Program-Level Survey
All accredited, undergraduate degree-granting 2- and 4-year public, private, and for-profit institutions in the US (n=2,678)
Provosts asked to identify 3-4 program areas to respond
NILOA 2010 Program-Level Questionnaire
Preview survey at: www.niloasurvey.org
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
National surveys
Web scans: 725 institutions
Exploring the Landscape: What Institutions Post on Their Websites About Student Learning Outcomes Assessment Activities
Natasha Jankowski & Julia Makela
Campuses report doing more assessment than they make accessible on their institutional websites. The typical institution shows only an average of two assessment activities. When information is posted, it is more often intended for internal institutional audiences
Web Scan Guiding Questions
What does the institution display on its website regarding student learning outcomes assessment?
On which web pages is information about assessment of student learning outcomes located?
Say vs. Show More assessment activity was reported by chief academic officers than was available on institution websites
80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Standardized Tests National Student Surveys Locally Developed Surveys NILOA 2009 National Survey Alumni Surveys Other Surveys NILOA 2009 Web Scan
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
National surveys Web scans: 725 institutions
Occasional papers & products
Occasional Paper #1
Assessment, Accountability, and Improvement
Peter T. Ewell
Assessments of what students learn during college are typically used for either improvement or accountability, and occasionally both. Yet, since the early days of the “assessment movement” in the US, these two purposes of outcomes assessment have not rested comfortably together.
www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm9e
Two Paradigms of Assessment
Continuous Improvement Accountability
Strategic dimensions
Purpose Orientation Motivation
Implementation
Instrumentation Nature of evidence Formative (improvement) Internal Engagement Multiple/triangulation Quantitative and qualitative Summative (judgment) External Compliance Standardized Quantitative Reference points Communication of results Use of results Over time, comparative, established goal Multiple internal channels Multiple feedback loops Comparative or fixed standard Public communication, media Reporting
Ewell, Peter T. (2007). Assessment and Accountability in America Today: Background and Context. In Assessing and Accounting for Student Learning: Beyond the Spellings Commission. Victor M. H. Borden and Gary R. Pike, Eds. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco.
Looking Back: What’s Been Accomplished?
Assessment Seen as Legitimate
Goals for Learning Established
A “Semi-Profession” for Assessment
Much Better Instruments and Methods
Looking Back: What Remains to be Done?
Authentic Faculty Ownership
Assessment Still an “Add-On”
Use of Information for Improvement is Underdeveloped
Sincere Institutional Engagement with Accreditors in Assessment
Occasional Paper #2
Three Promising Alternatives for Assessing College Students’ Knowledge and Skills
Banta, Griffin, Flateby & Kahn
Of the various ways to assess student learning outcomes, many faculty members prefer what are called “authentic” approaches that document student performance during or at the end of a course or program of study. www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm
Occasional Paper #3
Connecting the Dots Between Learning and Resources
Jane V. Wellman
With all the talk about the need for more accountability, surprisingly little is known about what kind of resources an institution needs in order to produce a given level of student attainment. www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm
Wellman’s Conclusions
Intentionality matters as much or more than money alone
Spending on instruction and student services pays off in learning, retention and graduation
Excess units cost institutions money, cost students in time and money, and do not get students to the finish line
Occasional Paper #4
Opening Doors for Faculty Involvement in Assessment
Pat Hutchings
The key to effectively using assessment data to improve student learning is to engage faculty in meaningful ways in this critical activity. This paper discusses the challenges inherent in and opportunities for doing so.
www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm
Occasional Paper #5
Valuing Assessment: Cost-Benefit Considerations
Randy Swing & Christopher Coogan
How can a campus know when enough spending is really enough? The authors systematically unpack what needs to be taken into account when allocating resources to the assessment of student learning outcomes.
www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
National surveys Web scans: 725 institutions Occasional papers & products
Interviews & focus groups with key actors: -- AAC&U -- ACE -- AIR
Perspectives from Campus Leaders on the Current State of Student Learning Outcomes Assessment
Jillian Kinzie
This paper highlights lessons from four focus group sessions with campus leaders--presidents, provosts, academic deans and directors of institutional research from a variety of two- and four year institutions-- regarding their perspectives on the state of learning assessment practices on their campuses.
Forthcoming Fall 2010
NILOA Activities
“Go to” Web site
www.learningoutcomesassessment.org
National surveys Web scans: 725 institutions Occasional papers & products
Interviews & focus groups with key actors: -- AAC&U -- ACE -- AIR --
Accreditors
Occasional Paper #6
Regional Accreditation and Student Learning Outcomes Assessment: Mapping the Territory
Staci Provezis
This paper examines the policies and procedures at each of the seven regional accreditation organizations, as they relate to student learning outcomes assessment.
www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/OccasionalPapers.htm
Connecting State Policies on Assessment with Institutional Assessment Activity
Peter Ewell, Natasha Jankowski & Staci Provezis
Two national surveys —one at the state level and one at the institutional level — show that state policies matter to student learning outcome assessment activities at both public and private institutions.
http://www.learningoutcomesassessment.org/NILOAstatestudy2010.htm
Eight “assessment active states:
Georgia Rhode Island Kentucky Minnesota Oklahoma South Dakota Tennessee West Virginia
Institutions in Assessment-Active States:
Use general knowledge/ skills measures (CLA, CAAP, MAPP) 58% vs 38%.
Use valid samples with national surveys (83% vs 58%)
Use employer surveys (76% vs 62%) and employer interviews (57% vs 47%)
Have common set of student learning outcomes (83% vs 76%)
No differences
re public and privates, transparency
Measuring Quality in Higher Education
( Vic Borden & Brandi Kernel, 2010) Web-based inventory hosted by AIR of assessment resources. Key words can be used to search the four categories: instruments (examinations, surveys, questionnaires, etc.); software tools and platforms; benchmarking systems and data resources; projects, initiatives and services.
http://applications.airweb.org/surveys/Default.aspx
NILOA Products Coming Soon
Assessment and accountability in community colleges
(Seybert & Ewell)
What the field needs from student affairs in assessment
(Schuh & Gansemer-Topf)
The role of institutional research in assessment
(Volkwein)
From gathering to using assessment results: Lessons from the Wabash National Longitudinal Study
(Blaich & Wise)
Ponder this:
1.
2.
3.
What is driving assessment of learning outcomes on your campus? How effectively does your institution assess student learning outcomes? What is needed to take assessment to the next level to further both assessment and improvement?
4.
How available are your assessment
results??
Where are the data posted? Are the data password protected?
Would it help if we agreed on common student learning outcomes (SLOs) for all undergraduates and expressed SLOs in the same language?
Should an evidence guide be developed that institutions and accreditation teams can use to standardize and examine institutional assessment activities?
Should a template be developed that institutions can use to make public information about SLOs, like VSA, but focused on learning?
Discussion
What are the obstacles that must be addressed to advance your assessment agenda?
What could you and/or NILOA do to overcome these challenges?