News Archive
National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment
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This blog provides a more in-depth commentary about the strengths and challenges of the CLA as well as the Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO) program in trying to find the "holy grail" for assessing learning outcomes globally.
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Recommendations for improving the pedagogy of engineering professors, which hopefully result in the retention of its students, are offered in this article.
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This article provides an overview of Virginia's public database, to be launched in April 2012, which will contain about median earnings over a six-year period of college graduates in the state of Virginia.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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Scientific knowledge is no longer of sole importance in getting a high score on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). Starting in 2015, the MCAT will include sections such as psychological, social, and biological foundations of behavior and critical analysis and reasoning skills. Articles in The Chronicle of Higher Ed and Inside Higher Ed highlight these new changes to the MCAT.
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The use of AAC&U's VALUE Rubrics to assess student learning at colleges and universities around the nation is the central focus of this issue.
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MITx Opens Enrollment for First Interactive Online Course
MITx's first OpenCourseWare course, 6.002x: Circuits and Electronics, opened today. Students, in hopes of earning credentials, will have their assignments and activities evaluated by machines. Articles in both The Chronicle of Higher Ed and Inside Higher Ed briefly discuss this initiative.
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The American Historical Association is teaming up with Lumina to help define learning outcomes for history graduates at the associate, bachelor, and graduate degree levels. Coverage of this effort can be found in both The Chronicle of Higher Ed and Inside Higher Education.
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Read Lederman's interview with Richard P. Keeling and Richard H. Hersh, authors of We're Losing Our Minds, about a term they call "higher learning."
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This article provides an overview of an interview with L. Rafael Reif, MIT's provost, and Anant Agarwal, director of MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, about the MITx OpenCourseWare Initiative.
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Program-level assessment and developing liberal education outcomes are discussed in the latest issue of AAC&U's, Liberal Education.
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Read AAC&U's latest edition of Bringing Theory to Practice which highlights SUNY Cortland's assessment process.
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A brief article describing President Obama's new "College Scorecard" which will hopefully help higher education institutions be more accountable and transparent about their costs (see more information about the Scorecard here).
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An update to MITx's OpenCourse Ware Initiative.
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This article describes how without the experience of teaching in a college classroom, many graduate students, or future faculty members, will not have the opportunity to understand how students learn.
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This brief article highlights Stanford's revisions to its undergraduate curriculum which focuses on the critical thinking skills of its students.
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"Documenting Uncertain Times: Postgraduate Transitions of the Academically Adrift Cohort" a report written by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa as a follow-up to Academically Adrift was released at AAC&U's meeting this week.
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This article provides an overview of one of the discussions at AAC&U's Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., at which deans and administrators voiced their views about assessment, or the measurement of student learning, on their campuses.
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This article discusses the collaboration between StraighterLine, the Education Testing Service (ETS) and the Council on Aid to Education's (CAE) efforts in trying to measure learning of credentialing courses.
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Latest Guidelines on Quality Released by the New Leadership Alliance for Student Learning and Accountability
The New Leadership Alliance for Student Learning and Accountability recently released its "Committing to Quality: Guidelines for Assessment and Accountability in Higher Education" which outline four broad principles for assessment and improvement in higher education: 1) set ambitious goals; 2) gather evidence of student learning; 3) use evidence to improve student learning; and 4) report evidence and results. Articles in both The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed highlight this publication.
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Questions arise in this article as to how learning will be assessed in MIT's Open Learning Initiative.
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This article discusses one response that a company, StraighterLine, plans to use to possibly validate 'badges' (see an earlier article about badges here).
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Using formative assessment to help understand students' metacognition in the classroom is the main feature of this commentary.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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Check out Charles Secolsky & D. Brian Denison's (2011) edited book, Handbook on Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation in Higher Education, which features a chapter written by NILOA's Staci Provezis and Natasha Jankowski titled, "Presenting Learning Outcomes Assessment Results to Foster Use."
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This article discusses how badges through online learning courses are being used to help build resumes and thereby threatening traditional college programs and degrees.
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In this brief commentary from the recent Higher Ed Tech Summit, technology executives share their thoughts about how program data that could improve graduation rates and learning would not be available for at least three years.
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Assessment UPdate Now AvailableThe latest issue of Assessment UPdate: Progress, Trends and Practice in Higher Education for November/December 2011 is now available. A couple of featured articles include, "My Own Worst Enemy: Five Ways My Best Intentions Impair Assessment." written by Jeremy D. Penn and "Repairing a Broken Assessment System," written by Christie Hill Magoulias. In addition, Gary Pike takes a look at The Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Surveys.
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Read Robert Connor's commentary regarding current discussions on improving student learning.
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An update about the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) recommendations.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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Read John C. Cavanaugh's abbreviated speech to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education about how accreditation needs "to adopt the approach already taken in many professions of clearly articulating what students are supposed to know and be able to demonstrate at various levels of educational attainment, and create accreditation standards and metrics that reflect it."
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This article describes a new take on using real-time technology in the classroom to help assess students' learning.
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Lumina's latest edition of Focus is now available. "New Ways to Measure Student Learning" written by Susan Headden,a senior writer/editor at Education Sector, is the featured article. Findings from NILOA's surveys are included.
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Divided into two parts, AAC&U's latest publication examines the assessment of student learning on college campuses. Part 1 focuses on psychological theories of learning and achievement while Part 2 offers case studies to help understand the various assessment models and methods used by campuses.
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Available for purchase is The Chronicle of Higher Education's 2011 report on online learning. This report discusses assessment and accountability for online courses and programs.
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Check out Mary Bart's newest article profiling the presentation of Dr. Ike Shibley, Assoc. Professor in Chemistry at Penn State Berks, on matching technological tools to course learning outcomes.
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Community Colleges and Accountability
As a result of the initial pilot study, the American Association of Community Colleges urges its member institutions to adopt the newly developed Voluntary Framework of Accountability created specifically for the unique needs of community colleges. Articles on the topic can be found in both Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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The newest issue of Research & Practice in Assessment has now been released. Some of the articles include: "Creating Seamless K-16 Pathways: Role of Assessment" written by Hillary R. Michaels, Katrice Hawthorne, Nuria Cuevas, and Alexei G. Mateev; "Exploring the Success of Transfer Programs For Community College Students" written by Reginald S. Blaylock and Marilee J. Bresciani; and a book review of Peggy Maki's "Coming to Terms with Student Outcomes Assessment: Faculty and Administrators’ Journeys to Integrating Assessment in Their Work and Institutional Culture" written by Dorothy C. Doolittle.
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This article highlights some of the major findings of NSSE results reported in its 2011 survey.
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Check out this article on WASC's efforts to assure quality in its region's higher education institutions in California, Hawaii and the Pacific Islands.
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NILOA's newest report on the transparency of evidence, written by Natasha Jankowski and Staci Provezis, is featured in Inside Higher Education and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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This article discusses the transformation of online learning, especially in respect to adult or non-traditional learners.
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The Council for Independent Colleges weighs in on the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA) and ways in which they have used it within their institutions in both Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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Check out how Central Piedmont and other community colleges are working to improve college readiness and completion by assessing the learning styles of at-risk students and much, much more.
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This article highlights Patrick T. Terenzini, a professor of higher education at Pennsylvania State University, and Ernest T. Pascarella's, a co-director of the Center for Research on Undergraduate Education at the University of Iowa discussion on results of the Wabash National Study at the Council of Independent Colleges conference.
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This article discusses possible reasons for the rise in mid-course feedback forms for faculty use.
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A brief article describing tips to help faculty read and use feedback from student evaluations.
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Check out Dr. James T. Minor's, Director of Higher Education Programs at the Southern Education Foundation, editorial column "Minor Details" which provides "insights on the college completion agenda, higher education policy, and institutional performance." This current issue examines issues in the assessment of student learning.
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Check out AAC&U's latest issue of Diversity & Democracy which was created "to support academic leaders and educators as they design and reshape their diversity programs, civic engagement initiatives, and global learning opportunities to better prepare students for principled action in today's complex world." This issues focuses on civic learning for shared futures and includes articles such as, Assessing Civic Mindedness, Civic Literacy across the Curriculum, and Higher Education for Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement: Reinvesting Longstanding Commitments.
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This article briefly describes seven learner-centered principles to improve one's teaching as discussed in a recent online seminar by Dr. Michele DiPietro, Executive Director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Kennesaw State University.
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This article connects the teaching and learning of phlebotomy with measurable learning objectives.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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The age-old question "Should colleges' general-education programs emphasize core skills or a core curriculum?" is discussed in this article
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This article discusses the recent push in giving credit for life experience, especially for adult students, on college campuses. (Accessing this article may require login.)
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AAC&U Announces New Project on Student Learning
Articles in both The Chronicle of Higher Ed and Inside Higher Ed highlight The Association of American Colleges and Universities recent $2.2 million, three-year effort in improving student learning and its assessment in eight states.
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In this article, the authors respond to recent critiques of measures of student engagement, specifically the NSSE and CCSSE.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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The Spellings Report, 5 Years Later
Three authors talk about the Spellings Report near its 5th anniversary in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Kelly Field's article, "Spellings Panel Spurred Progress in Some Key Areas but Failed to Remake American Higher Education" examines progress made in 3 areas: access, accountability, and affordability.
Margaret Spellings' Q&A titled,"Former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings Discusses the Impact of Her Commission" gauges progress made since the Report.
Robert Zemsky's "The Unwitting Damage Done by the Spellings Commission" gives us an insider's view of the Spellings Commission and how he sees it now.
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A brief article discussing different tools available to assess student learning rather than just the standard evaluations given to students.
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No Success on Student Measures
A new report issued by the Education Department's Committee on Measures of Student Success regarding their recommendations for judging student success at community colleges was just released. The Education Department stated that some improvements were needed for the voluntary collection, disclosure, and reporting of community colleges, especially in the areas of measuring student learning and employment. Articles in both The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed discuss the report and recommendations.
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Check out this article featuring Dr. Sherril B. Gelmon, Professor of Public Health at Portland State University, who established a methodology to assess the effectiveness of service learning programs on her campus and others.
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Texas-Size Compromise
A new framework proposed by Francisco Cigarroa, Chancellor of the University of Texas Systems Board, was recently released in an effort to become more transparent. The framework is "designed to improve accountability, outcomes, and efficiency at the systems nine academic institutions and six health centers." Articles in The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed highlight this effort.
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Faculty from the University of Connecticut describe their experience using assessment to learn more about student writing on their campus. One of the most valuable results of conducting assessment on their campus was the dialogue among faculty.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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Assessment UPdate Now AvailableThe latest issue of Assessment UPdate: Progress, Trends and Practice in Higher Education for July/August 2011 is now available. One featured article is titled "Connecting Assessment to Resource Allocation: A Demonstration Project at Queens University of Charlotte" written by Jamie B. Slater, Timothy E. Burson, and John A. McArthur. Gary Pike's Assessment Measures column examines the RCI, Reasoning about Current Issues Test, developed by Karen Kitchener, Patricia King, and Phillip Wood in 2000.
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With the push for being data-driven institutions, this article discusses the amount students are surveyed at higher education institutions. In addition, use of rewards (gift cards, IPods, etc.) for getting larger groups of students to take surveys such as the National Survey of Student Engagement
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A brief article discussing the importance of reporting assessment information in a clear way to make them usable.
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This WICHE Policy Insights Brief describes the history and philosophy behind the Common Core State Standards that were created for K-12, with an emphasis on what they mean for higher education.
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This article describes an innovative way to calculate student success by following students for a ten year period instead of using the current methods of calculating graduation rates.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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The tenth NILOA Occasional Paper titled, Learning Outcomes Assessment in Community Colleges, written by Charlene Nunley, Trudy Bers, and Terri Manning has just been released. Articles discussing the paper were written in today's Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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Under the Educational Assessment topic in Faculty Focus, Mary Bart focuses on a recent presentation given by Linda Suskie, vice president at the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, discussing ways in which campus leadership can help influence a "culture of assessment."
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The latest issue of Research & Practice in Assessment is now available here. Some articles contained in this issue include: Marilee J. Bresciani - "Identifying Barriers in Implementing Outcomes-Based Assessments Program Review: A Grounded Theory Analysis"; Lauren Weiner & Marilee J. Bresciani - "Can Institutions Have Quality Programming Without Utilizing a Systematic Outcomes-Based Assessment Process?"; and Walter F. Heinecke - "Reflective (Ac) Counting: Institutional Research, Evaluation, & Assessment in a Time of Cholera." A book review of "Academically Adrift" written by Kathryne Drezek McConnell is also featured.
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In this article, faculty and administrators discuss the difficulties in trying to assess student learning outcomes for ethics courses. Trudy Banta, a member of NILOA's National Advisory Panel, is featured.
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This article in the May-June 2011 issue of Change Magazine discusses in more detail what is needed to reach President Obama's 2020 college completion goal. Included is information about what's needed to increase the quality of schools and of student learning in America's schools.
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Find out about what's new with NILOA in addition to recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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The NILOA 2011 National Survey Report titled, Down and In: Assessment Practices at the Program Level, written by Peter Ewell, Jillian Kinzie, and Karen Paulson has just been released. Articles discussing the paper were written in today's Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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In this commentary, William Tierney describes the experiences of a current student, whom he refers to as a friend, who ponders if he is "learning anything of value in college."
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This article discusses a recent conversation of the Education Department's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) regarding suggestions towards a new national accreditation system. One suggestion that is gaining support is possibly having current regional accreditation agencies oversee academic quality of institutions while the federal government control federal dollars. Far from being done, recommendations for this new system will be given at the end of this year to the Ed Department.
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Six students in Stanford University's Structured Liberal Education program discuss the importance of a Humanities degree and what they have gained through their college years.
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This article reports on the topic of assessment at the American Association for University Professors meeting, including the panel that NILOA participated. The focus of the article is on one award-winning professors pedagogical approach that uses Blooms Taxonomy.
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Read about this teacher's commitment to transparency for her students.
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This article discusses the Education Department's Committee on Measures of Student Success recommendations for assessing student learning outcomes at community colleges.
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This article offers a preview of what's to come at the upcoming Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education conference this weekend at the University of Kentucky.
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This policy brief provides a brief timeline and examples of state performance-based strategies in higher education. Harnisch (2011) asserts "Performance-based funding for higher education has reemerged as a state policy solution aimed at generating greater institutional productivity, accountability and educational attainment" (p. 10). While performance-based systems look more at performance indicators of institutions, student learning outcomes also play a role.
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Read Herman Berliner's (Provost at Hofstra University) take on accreditation.
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The Council of Graduate Schools just released their latest publication, Preparing Future Faculty to Assess Student Learning. This monograph examines professional development programs designed to help current graduate students understand more about student learning outcomes assessment. Check out the press release here.
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Find out about the new reports that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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NILOA's Occasional Paper 9 titled, "What faculty unions say about student learning outcomes assessment" written by Larry Gold, Gary Rhoades, Mark Smith, and George Kuh has just been released. Articles discussing the paper were written in today's Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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Check out the latest (Spring 2011) Weave Newsletter. WEAVE (2010) "guides and provides for the alignment of multiple processes, including assessment, planning, accreditation, budgeting and institutional priorities."
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Results from a recent Pew Center Research survey show college and university presidents feelings about the quality of teaching and learning at their institutions.
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In an effort to improve student learning outcomes, six schools - American Public University System, Colorado Community College System, Rio Salado College, University of Hawaii System, University of Illinois Springfield, and the University of Phoenix - are led by WCET (the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies) through a $1 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The press release is located here.
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A panel created by the American Council on Education, named the National Task Force on Institutional Accreditation, consisting of college presidents and other senior administrators and heads of accreditating agencies was the feature of this article. NILOA's Stan Ikenberry was announced as one of the 25-member panel. .
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Joseph E. Aoun, president of Northeastern University, in this article acknowledges that virtual learning is here to stay. He writes about how placed-based education adds a different kind of value to student learning in comparison to virtual learning.
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Assessing Complex General Education Student Learning OutcomesEdited by Jeremy D. Penn, the latest edition of New Directions for Institutional Research (vol. 149) has just been released. Resources and tools are provided by the authors to help those interested in assessing complex general education student learning outcomes at their institutions. Some articles include: Donald L. Hatcher - "Which test? Whose scores? Comparing standardized critical thinking tests", Richard L. Hughes and Steven K. Jones - "Developing and assessing college student teamwork skills" and Jeremy D. Penn - "The case for assessing complex general education student learning outcomes".
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Find out about the new reports that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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Read Fryshman's, an accreditor and professor of physics at the New York Institute of technology, take on accreditation, measuring student learning, and why "numbers mislead, distort, distract, and divert."
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Check out the newest briefs in CCRC's Assessment of Evidence series.
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In this article, a recent discussion at the Association of College and Research Libraries Conference encourages librarians to assess their role in student learning.
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Using data from the book, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses, recently released by sociologists Richard Arum and Josipa Roks as the backbone of this article, several business schools are highlighted specifically for their different assessment methods. Interviews with deans of the business schools and the president of Babson College featured in this article can also be found in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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In this article, AACSB International, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, "assurance-of-learning" mandate is challenged by faculty members.
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The Western Association of Colleges and Schools (WASC) Senior College Commission and its new plans are the feature of this article. WASC Sr. explains its reasoning behind its revamping and is issuing a new call for accountability from its schools. The threat of the possible take-over of accreditation by the federal government is a major reason in trying to establish benchmarks for assessing student learning outcomes and attempting to create external comparisons for its schools.
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Accountability Framework for 2-Year Colleges Progresses in Pilot Test
Results of the Voluntary Framework of Accountability, being tested by 72 community colleges, were communicated to an audience at this past week's American Association of Community Colleges Conference in article written in The Chronicle. The session was also featured in an article in Inside Higher Ed.
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In a session at this past week's American Educational Research Association Conference, Nicholas A. Bowman, a postdoc researcher at the University of Notre Dame, explains his findings from the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education regarding students real vs. perceived learning. Through his analysis, Bowman shows that there may be misconceptions by colleges and universities of students' self-understanding through the use of longitudinal, self-reported means.
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Want to know more about learning outcomes for adult students? Check out the newest edition of AACU&U's Peer Review.
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ASSESSMENT UPdate now availableThe new ASSESSMENT UPdate: Progress, Trends, and Practices in Higher Education for March/April 2011 is now available. An article by NILOA's Peter Ewell titled, "From the States: A Coalition of the Willing: The Presidents' Alliance for Excellence in Student Learning and Accountability" is featured. Recommended reading suggested by Susan Kahn are also included.
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In this article, the author features a discussion at the Forum on Education Abroad conference on assessing learning outcomes for those students studying abroad.
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This article highlights two sessions to be covered on student learning at this week's American Education Research Association (AERA) conference in New Orleans. The authors of the two studies argue that the NSSE does a great job looking at student engagement but it does not do well predicting student outcomes such as graduation and retention. NILOA's Jillian Kinzie is featured.
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AAC&U's latest publication, The LEAP Vision for Learning: Outcomes, Practices, Impact, and Employers' Views, has just been released. Some of the information covered include "summaries of research about high-impact educational practices and learning outcomes; summaries of trends in curricular, assessment, and general education reform; and data about the outcomes that employers value in the college graduates they hire and promote."
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A new "Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing" established to help foster the "habits of mind" at this week's Conference on College Composition and Communication. While the framework does not offer specific standards, it does help to define concepts in which students could possibly be assessed on such as openness, flexibility, and metacognition.
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The Association of Governing Boards recently released its statement on the responsibility of governing boards of ensuring educational quality for the institutions it serves in addition to understanding the importance of student learning outcomes. Articles on AGB's statement were featured in Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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In Philadelphia this past weekend, the American Federation of Teacher's (AFT) Higher Education Division's recently released report titled, "Student Success in Higher Education" was of particular focus. In this report, the faculty role in assessing student learning as well as AFT's stance on assessment were a part of the discussions. Coverage in Inside Higher Ed features NILOA's George Kuh and Peter Ewell. The conference was also mentioned in an article in The Chronicle.
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This article in AACU's Liberal Education publication examines possible reasons why students are studying less in college. A review of results from leading assessment tools used to survey students is included.
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Read this article in AAC&U's Liberal Education publication about one professor's journey towards assessing student learning outcomes for his course.
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This article discusses the creation of a "quality scorecard" and its metrics for online programs.
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Find out about the new reports that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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An article featuring a discussion on the assessment of student learning and its connection to accreditation from the American Council of Education's meeting is found in The Chronicle. NILOA's Dr. George Kuh is also mentioned.
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As a follow-up to a dialogue from the E-Portfolio Forum held at the American Association of Colleges and Universities Annual Meeting in January 2011, the author lists some questions that she had about the use of e-portfolios for student learning and assessment.
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Check out the latest (Winter 2011) Weave Newsletter. WEAVE (2010) "guides and provides for the alignment of multiple processes, including assessment, planning, accreditation, budgeting and institutional priorities."
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Trudy Banta and Charlie Blaich, Edwin Welch, and Terrel Rhodes have articles featured on topics of assessment and student learning outcomes in the latest issue of Change Magazine.
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Check out Dr. George Kuh's blog titled, They'll Love You Just the Way You Are: Tiptoeing Toward Transparency, written for one of AAC&U's initiatives - Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP): Excellence for Everyone as a Nation Goes to College - which "features postings and perspectives on 'liberal education' - how it is changing, why it is so important in today's world, and what people are saying about it around the country and the world."
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NILOA just released its Transparency Framework designed to help institutions evaluate the extent to which they are making evidence of student accomplishment readily accessible and potentially useful and meaningful to various audiences. See coverage of the Framework in Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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In this article, Boettcher offers different examples as evidence of student learning (i.e., interviews, professional work products) as "alternatives to the traditional research paper" for faculty who teach online classes.
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This Winter 2011 issue focuses specifically on measuring student learning and tools used to assess student learning.
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City Colleges of Chicago's Efforts to Improve Student Outcomes
In an effort to improve student outcomes, the City Colleges of Chicago are in the process of possibly replacing its leadership. Chancellor Cheryl L. Hyman's reasoning for this is because the current job description did not focus on students and student outcomes which needed to be reflected in today's presidencies. Both The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed discuss this as one of their featured stories.
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Find out about the new reports that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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New Book on Assessment
A new book titled, "Literary Study, Measurement, and the Sublime: Disciplinary Assessment" written by Donna Heiland, vice president at Teagle Foundation and Laura J. Rosenthal is due out this month by the Teagle Foundation. The book uses essays by current scholars in both the fields of literary studies and assessment to discuss the pros and cons of using assessment in the study of literature. A commentary on the book by the authors is in the current edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education. Inside Higher Ed also features a dialogue with the authors about their book.
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Why Do I Like Assessment? Let Me Count the Ways
In this commentary in The Chronicle, Theodore Wagenaar discusses the "most essential elements of quality assessment" as well as the need for faculty to become more engaged in assessment.
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The recent book, Academically Adrift by Arum and Roksa, is the feature of a new article by David Glenn. Glenn's article "Scholars Question New Book's Gloom on Education" examines some of the limitations of the study's findings. Want more commentaries on Academically Adrift? Check out Alexander W. Astin's statistical take on the book and also a response by Jonathan Zimmerman relating the book to Vanderbilt doctors and a cup of coffee, both in The Chronicle of Higher Education. A live chat with the authors is also featured.
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ASSESSMENT UPdate now availableThe new ASSESSMENT UPdate: Progress, Trends, and Practices in Higher Education for January/February 2011 is now available. Some of the articles include: The Presentation of the Student Role in Everyday Classroom Life: An Assessment by Jonathan I. Marx, Jennifer Crew Solomon, Bradley G. Tripp; Editor's Notes by Trudy W. Banta, and a column on Assessment Measures written by Gary R. Pike. Recommended reading suggested by Susan Kahn are also included.
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The Assessment of Evidence Series initiated by the Community College Research Center (CCRC) focuses on eight areas: developmental education assessment, developmental acceleration, developmental math pedagogy, contextualization of basic skills instruction, online learning, non-academic support, institutional program structure, and organizational improvement. CCRC's goal of the series is "to help community colleges identify concrete strategies that have the potential to improve student success on a scale needed to meet national goals for increased postsecondary attainment."
CCRC has just released its' latest Working Paper in their Assessment of Evidence Series titled, "Assessing Developmental Assessment in Community Colleges" written by Katherine L. Hughes & Judith Scott-Clayton (February 2011). -
This article provides an overview of some practices of institutions who are interested in learning about learning. The author also stresses the need for faculty involvement in creating an "evidence-based culture of learning" (Walsh, 2011).
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Achieving the Dream Report Released
The report titled, "Turning the Tide: Five Years of Achieving the Dream in Community Colleges" was just released February 2011 by MDRC, a nonprofit social-policy-research organization, and the Community College Research Center at Columbia University's Teachers College. This report reviews the progress that the 26 colleges involved in the Achieving the Dream Initiative, funded by Lumina Foundation for Education, have made from 2004 through Spring 2009. An article in Inside Higher Ed also discusses some of the findings of the report.
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Higher Education Accreditation Hearings
Over the past weekend, the U.S. Department of Education helped lead a discussion on the future of higher education accreditation. Some issues included accreditation's gatekeeping function, "prodding" vs. "fixing", and the role of federal government in terms of accreditation.
The following articles: Mend It, Don't End It (2/4/11, Inside Higher Ed), Advisory Panel Wades Into Sticky Accreditation Issues (2/4/11, The Chronicle of Higher Education), and Policy Making by Post-It Notes (2/7/11, Inside Higher Ed) describes the above issues and others in more detail. NILOA's Peter Ewell is also featured.
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The powerpoint pdf from the NILOA presentation at AAC&U, "Can you see me now? Taking the pulse of transparency efforts" is now available for download.
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The article gives an overview of one of this past week's American Association of Colleges & Universities sessions discussing Lumina Foundations's Degree Qualifications Profile.
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This article discusses tapping into students' metacognition through new and innovative ways to assess student learning
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Lumina Foundation for Education released their newest publication, The Degree Qualifications Profile, designed by four higher education policy experts, including NILOA's own Peter Ewell. The Degree Qualifications Profile was created to address the specific learning outcomes graduating students should obtain regardless of their degree level (associate, bachelor, or master's degree).
Articles written in The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed addresses both some of the advantages and concerns associated with this Profile, if implemented as intended.
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The American Council on Education, Achieve, and the State Higher Education Executive Officers just released their brief on the importance of the higher education community to collaborate with their K-12 partners through the implementation and use of the newly adopted Common Core State Standards Initiative.
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The CHEA 2011 winners for the Outstanding Institutional Practices in Student Learning Outcomes has been announced.
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Find out about the new reports that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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This article discusses the three prongs that community colleges will need to begin collecting data for the new Voluntary Framework of Accountability introduced earlier this month by the American Association of Community Colleges.
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40 pilot colleges will participate in a new Voluntary Framework of Accountability (VFA), a national system designed to provide data, transparency, and benchmarking.
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A new study by West and Carrell discuss how a previous class in a sequence of classes (like math) can determine students' later grades.
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The last of the series on Measuring Stick summarizes the arguments provided in the series for assessment and accountability in higher education.
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Eight open letters from different stakeholders (High school junior, parents, advocates, and applicants) to Presidents about college quality.
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A finale to the Measuring Stick series, this entry has a graph of 22 ways to measure outcomes for a course.
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This article looks at a research, as contrary to generated ideas, on degree completion.
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In this commentary, Carey discusses the consequences for not pursuing student learning assessments and the potential future for measuring student learning.
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A new Measuring Stick article features the discussions held in Washington DC about learning outcomes at the graduate level.
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Find out about the new reports and upcoming papers that NILOA is producing along with recent news items about learning outcomes assessment in this month's newsletter.
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This entry highlights a number of student learning outcomes assessment and centers on the new study done by Wabash.
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CGS hosted a meeting of assessment experts and graduate deans to explore how universities can prepare graduate students who aspire to faculty positions with the skills they will need to assess student learning. Read the press release by clicking above. NILOA director, Kuh was present to give a national perspective of assessment in the US.
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Measuring Stick: Reactions to the Presidents' Alliance
Four articles are in the Measuring Stick blog discussing the Presidents' Alliance. One from William M. Chance, a second from Josipa Roksa and Laura W. Perna and a third from, Michael Poliakoff. A final word comes from David Paris, the executive director of New Leadership Alliance.
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New standards responding to real-time student needs for military service members, veterans, and their families transitioning from military service in higher education have been released by the CAS.
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Slippery Rock University's webpage "Institutional Profile: Accountability 2010" shows clear communication and easy navigation of student learning outcomes assessment information.
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Increasing college completion is meaningless unless certificates and degrees represent real learning, according to the Center for Community College Student Engagement.
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Researchers are getting to learning outcomes like problem solving through game play.
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Check out the 2010 NSSE Annual Results report released today.
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This month's AAC&U newsletter features USC and how the school administrators are creating change.
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A new report from NSSE starts questions of how student data is being used (or not) for assessment.
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This monograph examines what educational research reveals about five educational practices: first-year seminars, learning communities, service learning, undergraduate research, and capstone experiences.
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A follow up article to last week's discussion on departmental assessment in Measuring Stick, this interview focuses on Villanova's program for engineering students.
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Faculty argue that some assessments do not work for all disciplines.
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This new Measuring Stick article looks at the faculty voice in the student learning debate.
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NILOA's sixth occasional paper is highlighted in this article, part of the Measuring Stick series, about some of the pressures that regional accreditors bring to bear and the influence accreditation has on learning-assessment projects.
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Suskie questions if colleges understand why assessment matters in this article.
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Job announcement for a newly created position, Director of Assessment. See link for details.
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A discussion about how to graphically display student learning outcomes (statement, objectives, assessments).
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"Perspectives from Campus Leaders on the Current State of Student Learning Outcomes Assessment: NILOA Focus Group Summary 2009-2010" 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.
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A new resource on assessment is now available. Kramer and Swing have written a book for campus leaders to identify strategies for assessments.
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This article argues that assessment information is needed to help schools like UMBC to show its true quality.
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NILOA researchers examined the intersection of the NCHEMS study of state policies on assessment of student learning with the NILOA national survey and webscan data in the newly released, "Connecting State Policies on Assessment with Institutional Assessment Activity."
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A new series in the Chronicle invite experts to write a 250 word essay on "quality and assessment of higher education." From Occasional Paper writer, Pat Hutchins is a piece on faculty involvement in student learning.
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NILOA is a featured Quality-of-Learning organization in this special report from The Chronicle.
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This article discusses the changes the CLA has prompted and its relation with assessment and accountability.
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At the graduate level, higher education leaders from 17 countries have agreed to a statement of principles for assessing the quality of education.
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A new report from the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, says that Board of Trustees do not spend enough time or understand student learning outcomes.
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A new series in the Chronicle invite experts to write a 250 word essay on "quality and assessment of higher education." This short audio is a discussion on the role of professors in student learning outcomes.
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This article from the Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice is a qualitative study on the "conditions that support assessment practice" at small colleges.
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A new series in the Chronicle invite experts to write a 250 word essay on "quality and assessment of higher education." From NILOA PI, George Kuh, this essay discusses issues of transparency of quality for potential students.
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CAS seeks to advance knowledge about the use of standards and self- assessment processes in enhancing programs and services to students and in developing designated student learning and developmental outcomes. Proposals due by October 15, 2010. The link will open in a pdf.
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A new series in the Chronicle invite experts to write a 250 word essay on "quality and assessment of higher education."
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There is a new association for assessment practitioners, focused on assessment practice and the factors that affect it, The Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education (AALHE) housed at the University of Kentucky.
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A new website, WhatWillTheyLearn.com compiles and grades schools on the required classes students take. This article gives a summary of this new website.
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Comparing the ETS, CAAP and CLA tests, this article discusses what each of these tests measure and the implications of giving these tests. Login may be required.
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Some colleges use writing samples from students as assessment of learning outcomes as described in this post.
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The University of Arizona seeks to fill a joint faculty/administrative position with an administrative appointment in the Office of Instruction & Assessment and a tenured faculty appointment in the College of Education. "Associate Professor, Higher Education and Assessment 45810"
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August 14, 2010 is the deadline (with rolling applications afterward) to apply for the Teagle Assessment Scholar Development Program. This program is for those "using evidence to improve student learning."
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Using the work of Tracy Penny Light this article describes ways to integrate e-portfolios into an assessment plan.
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U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced the new members of the Committee on Measures of Student Success.
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What's on your website?
Discussing the new NILOA webscan report, both the Chronicle and Inside Higher Ed briefly discuss the main findings.
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This new report from NCHEMS highlights the results of an inventory of Fifty-states and the state policies on the assessment of student learning outcomes. Clicking this will link you to the pdf of the report.
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In this article, the author discusses the academic outcomes of study abroad across the University System of Georgia in a ten year study: higher GPAs, increased cultural understanding, and higher graduation rates.
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An article on how Community College of the District of Columbia is building assessment into the campus culture.
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President Bennett posts in his blog about Earlham, both issues for "his campus community as well as issues of national significance in higher education."
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For a limited time, Routledge Education is making some of their outcomes assessment materials free. Click here for the titles and links to the articles.
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The June Newsletter for NILOA is now available. The newsletters are posted online but you can also join our email list to receive these newsletters in your inbox. To join, click on the top right of this box on "Join our Email List" or go to the NILOA website at: learningoutcomesassessment.org
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Molly Corbett Broad, on the NILOA National Advisory Panel and President of American Council on Education, writes this piece on the increased demands on improving performance and the appropriate response from colleges.
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In this article, the author questions the use of the word accountability, tracing the history of it to potential uses of it.
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This Chronicle blog post gives voice to faculty involved in the Tuning project and provides a link to the Utah Tuning report.
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The presentations that NILOA made at AIR 50th Annual Forum are now available on the website.
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New research shows the results on Collegiate Learning Assessment was strongly tied to how long they spent taking it.
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If you weren't able to make it to the AIR 50th Forum, here is an article sharing some highlights.
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This article discusses faculty role in assessment efforts, highlighting NILOA's fourth Occasional Paper written by Pat Hutchins.
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This journal article discusses an assessment of orientation programs on student learning. Requires login.
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This new issue of Peer Review from AAC&U has a number of articles about how departments are developing assessment approaches to student learning.
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This article discusses tension between accountability and improvement for professionals and policy makers.
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This AEI series article describes ways in which voluntary accountability systems miss the mark by not allowing consumers to make comparisons.
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A commentary piece on how learning can be improved with ten questions guiding conversations about learning outcomes and assessment.
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This article discusses the attempts for a national accountability system at the community college level, Voluntary Framework of Accountability.
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This statement responds to the National Governor's Association and CCSSO's release of common standards, pushing for these goals to become reality.
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AFT has launched a website on student success and college accountability.
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This new publication provides advice on using rubrics for assessment.
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The publication provides information and data from a multi-institutional study on Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) and adult student outcomes.
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A re-released and updated ACE publication, co-authored by NILOA Peter Ewell suggest a new system for assigning academic credit.
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This current issue of Change magazine has two articles of interest,"Taking Teaching to (Performance) Task: Linking Pedagogical and Assessment Practices" by Marc Chun and "The Evolution of Assessment Policy: A View from Virginia" by T. Dary Erwin and Joseph G. DeFilippo. Requires login.
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CHEA has prepared a statement on "Effective Practices: The Role of Accreditation in Student Achievement" to describe accreditation practices that are especially valuable as institutions and programs address student achievement.
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A new report about public accountability measures (UCAN, VSA) do not live up to their promise as described in this news piece.
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A general piece about accountability and why we do it.
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This blog post discusses assessment and ideas of transparency as demonstrated through marketing.
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The results (as well as a brief word of what these surveys are about) of this year's NSSE and CUSC (Canadian University Survey Consortium) are discussed in this article.
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In the Fall issue of Peer Review, the focus is on study abroad programs and looking at learning outcomes. Many of the articles are available online.
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Martha Kanter calls for more transparency in the way higher education does accreditation.
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This article discusses the possibility of having a world learning outcomes assessment spearheaded by the OECD.
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Another article about AAC&U's meeting and the ongoing conversation about assessment-- if it's enough, how it should be done, and why.
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Bennett suggests each institution having a public learning audit document and gives the example of what this means for Earlham College as a way for public accountability.
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CIC's Presidents Institute was held from Jan 4-7. Many of the keynote sessions and plenary talks are available online. Of note, the closing plenary featuring Bob Shireman, Sylvia Manning, Peter Ewell, and Ed Welch addressed the issue of quality assurance in higher education.
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Highlighting the work of the New England Consortium on Assessment and Student Learning as presented at the annual meeting of AAC&U
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Judith Eaton writes about a new era in accreditation in this Inside Higher Ed article. Eaton discusses the key characteristics of accreditation and accountability today.
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This Chronicle article discusses the reaction of law schools to the American Bar Association suggestions for standards and assessments.
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The 2008 annual results of the Law School Survey of Engagement is released today. This Inside Higher Ed article highlights the findings.
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This Inside Higher Ed article discusses a new report by Student Success, looking at the effects of first-year, low-income student programs for retention.
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Megah Oakleaf is selected as the lead researcher on a project looking at the learning outcomes and value of academic libraries. PI George Kuh of NILOA sits on the advisory board for this project.
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While many schools have the learning outcome of critical thinking, this Chronicle opinion article explores the implications.
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Recapping conversations from the annual meeting of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, this Inside Higher Ed article focuses on the need to use assessments and tips on how to do so.
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The University of Phoenix has released its second academic annual report sparking conversation about accountability and transparency. This Inside Higher Ed article identifies the complex dynamics of the report from a for-profit school.
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A news item in Inside Higher Ed noted that Achieving the Dream, an initiative for improvement in community colleges has appointed Dr. Wlliam Trueheart as the new CEO.
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The 124th annual meeting for New England Associations of Schools and Colleges is currently underway. Co-principal investigator, George Kuh from NILOA is presenting.
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This Chronicle ticker item highlights a new report out by the Canadian Council on Learning that calls for a national standard for learning outcomes.
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Mark Schneider writes for Inside Higher Ed and critically evaluates the NSSE assessment.
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Todd A. Weber, Director of Faculty Development at Marylhurty University writes the editors at The Chronicle with critiques of the current assessment state at universities.
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This interview is from the Electronic Newsletter of the Association for Institutional Research. In this feature, they summarize the results of an electronic interview with an individual institutional research practitioner.
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This Inside Higher Ed article covers the conversation held at American Enterprise Institute's forum on "Increasing Accountability in American Higher Education." NILOA's Senior Scholar, Peter Ewell presented. The Chronicle also has an article.
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This Chronicle article look at the findings from the CSSEE report, "Making Connections: Dimensions of Student Engagement."
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The CCSSE 2009 Annual Results report, "Making Connections: Dimensions of Student Engagement" was released today.
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A brief ticket item from the Chronicle about a new report from the Governors' Association on accountability and assessment.
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This podcast features Joe D. May talking about the need and political risks for a new accountability system that community colleges are developing for themselves.
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The annual report for NSSE, a student outcome assessment tool, is now available.
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NSSE reactions
A number of articles have addressed the new NSSE report: Inside Higher Education has a commentary on the report, while the Chronicle writes about a presentation at ASHE that was critical of the report, which Inside Higher Education also had a similiar article, and USA Today ties in NSSE research with their data-- listing examples of learning outcome activities.
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Implications from this viewpoint piece from Insider Higher Education is important for higher education assessment. Arguing that there will be greater accountability from the Obama administration, then higher education institutions must be ready for assessments.
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The designers of the VSA conducted an analysis of assessment instruments. This interesting Inside Higher Ed article discusses the history and validity of CLA, CAAP, MAAP.
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Academic Impressions looks at the report from NILOA and Donald Norris, president of Strategic Initiatives, Inc. and a key thinker on this issue, offers some practical strategies for moving people to take action based on assessment.
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The feature story in the current issue of Campus Technology looks at the long term impact of ePortfolios.
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At U of Minnesota, Rochester, the faculty in health science are trying something new to evaluate learning outcomes. This Chronicle article describes how the program features a uniform course sequence and collection of data on student learning.
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Trent Batson in this article for Campus Technology discusses the importance for student voices in assessments particularly through ePortfolios, which is also the feature of the current issue.
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This Chronicle article says, "colleges participating in the Voluntary System of Accountability are told the tests are compatible in determining students' attainments."
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This article from Inside Higher Ed highlights the new white paper on higher education from The Center for American Progress, "Putting the Customer First in College." The white paper suggests for an Office of Consumer Protection in Higher Education.
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This news article from Inside Higher Ed highlights how some colleges are using learning technology to predict which students will succeed in various courses, who might need help, and who might need to reconsider enrolling.
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A Chronicle article featuring the new NILOA report on learning outcomes and assessment, with interview bits with our Co-Principal Investigator, George Kuh.
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This Inside Higher Ed article highlights the work of NILOA and the recently released report on learning outcomes and assessments.
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This article from The Chronicle, documents questions and topics raised during the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning conference.
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This past weekend was the ten year anniversary for NSSE, this article found in Inside Higher Ed captures the significant of this celebration and raises questions for the future of assessments.
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A podcast interview from Inside Higher Ed: Robert Connor, from the Teagle Foundation focused on prodding colleges to confront the question of whether and how much their students are learning -- and to find ways how to show it.
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With pressures for more accountability are portfolios the way? This Inside Higher Ed article, by two CLA advocates, argue there are limitations since there is no standardization, it is hard to large-scale assess, and is potentially biased.
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Last week's announcement for a universal accountability system for community colleges has been challenged with responses like this one from Inside Higher Ed. How should the new system be measured? Looking at an example for Oregon community college.
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A helpful Chronicle article for those creating and administrating surveys that looks at response rates of surveys and common issues with them.
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RAND has just published a new report: The Collegiate Learning Assessment: Setting Standards for Performance at a College or University. Download the free pdf today.
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An article from Campus Technology examining the assessment tool, Sakai and the potential use for it in smaller, non-research schools as demonstrated through a case study.
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Application now available for 2010 CHEA Award for Outstanding Institutional Practice in Student Learning Outcomes.
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Discusses the CLA Longitudinal Study, which involves 2,300 students at 24 four-year colleges and universities to understand the gains in collegiate level learning.
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Provides an overview of the perspectives on sharing test data for comparability.
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Discusses the accountability system Transparency by Design.
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A new blog from the LEAP (Liberal Education and America's Promise) initiative launched, which "features postings and perspectives on liberal education."
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Covers Stan Ikenberry's speech at the SHEEO annual meeting, where he talked about the early findings of the NILOA survey.
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President of Council for Higher Education Accreditation tells of the continued demand for accountability in the new administration.
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Describes six typical "maladies" to assessment and how to overcome them.
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The president of Miami Dade College explains this college's learning outcomes assessment techniques.
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Covers community colleges and asserts that new ways are needed to measure student learning.
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Report based on a survey of members of The Association of American Colleges and Universities.
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Inside Higher Ed's compilation of articles about assessment of student learning and accountability in higher education.
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Three states adopt European model of assessing student learning.
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Welcome to the newly created NILOA Web site! Check back as we add more information.
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Carnegie Perspectives . . . A different way to think about assessment of student learning
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Who Really Pays for Assessment?The author contemplates the monetary and staffing resources required for new assessment practices.
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Describes the conversations around assessment at the AAC&U meeting, and mentions the National Institute of Learning Outcome Assessment as a new resource.
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Provides state-by-state evaluations of their efforts to measure student learning.
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Reports on a study of the Collegiate Learning Assessment.
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Examines the state of assessing learning since Measuring UP 2000 in preparation for Measuring Up 2008.
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By Richard Arum, New York University and Social Science Research Council Josipa Roksa, University of Virginia, with Melissa Velez, New York University Studies factors that contribute to student learning in higher education, using the Collegiate Learning Assessment as a tool.
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Provides research on what is happening in the realm of student learning assessment on campuses Volume 2008 Issue S1 (Autumn (Fall) 2008) Special Issue: Assessing and Accounting for Student Learning: Beyond the Spellings Commission
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Argues that institutions are now listing increasingly more details in increasingly more places to prove they are accountable.
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Reports on the life of the Spellings Commission report after the change in office.
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Presents information on CHEA award recipients.
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Serves as a planning document on the OECD’s plans for assessing student learning.