Department or Program
Assessment of Student Learning Plan – Division of Student Life
Kansas State University
A. Department and Submission Date
College: Division of Student Life
Department: Disability Support Services
Submission Date: 7.28.11
B. Contact Person(s) for the Assessment Plans
Andrea Blair, Director, andreab@ksu.edu
C. Departmental Mission Statement
Kansas State University is dedicated to providing equal opportunity and access for every student.
The staff of Disability Support Services (DSS) provides a broad range of supportive services in
an effort to ensure that the individual needs of each student are met. In addition, the staff
functions as an advocate for students with disabilities on the K-State campus. Through active
involvement with all areas of the University, the office is able to monitor conditions relevant to
students with disabilities and to provide help with decisions affecting their quality of life.
D. Assessment of Student Learning Three-Year Plan
1. Student Learning Outcome(s)
a. List (or attach a list) all of the student learning outcomes for the department.
b. Identify outcomes that will be assessed in the first year of the assessment plan.
Outcome 1. Students at K-State who are eligible for DSS services are self identifying and
requesting support services and accommodations that are necessary to reach their
academic goals and meet legislative regulations.
Outcome 2. Students registered with DSS and are eligible for classroom accommodations
(such as test accommodations, notetaking services, alternate format of text) will be
retained after their first semester due to using accommodations immediately upon
enrollment at K-State.
Outcome 3. Students registered with DSS will utilize their accommodation of extended
time on exams only when extended time is necessary due to their disability. For clarity,
some students will request extended time only because of anxiety or fear and not need the
extra time.
Outcome 4. Students registered with DSS with print disabilities such as reading
disabilities and visual impairments will improve their GPA by requesting alternate format
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for course materials such as textbooks. A book in alternate format is defined as books that
are in electronic format that can be accessed on a computer screen and heard using
specialized screen reading software.
Special rationale for selecting these learning outcomes (optional):
Relationship to K-State Student Learning Outcomes (insert the program SLOs and check all that
apply):
Program
SLOs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Program SLO
University-wide SLOs (Undergraduate Programs)
is
Knowledge
Critical
Communication Diversity Academic /
conceptually
Thinking
Professional
different
Integrity
from
university
SLOs
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
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Program
SLOs
[NA for Student Life]
University-wide SLOs (Graduate Programs)
Knowledge
Skills
Attitudes and Professional
Conduct
Program SLO is
conceptually
different from
university SLOs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
2. How will the learning outcomes be assessed? What groups will be included in the
assessment?
[Briefly describe the assessment tools, measures, or forms of evidence that will be
utilized to demonstrate students’ accomplishment of the learning outcomes selected in the
one-year plan. Also indicate whether each measure is direct or indirect. If you are
unsure, then write “Unsure of measurement type”. There is an expectation that at least
one of the assessment methods/measures will be direct measures of student learning (see
Measures, Rubrics, & Tools for Assessing Student Learning Outcomes on the APR
website for examples of direct and indirect measures).]
Outcome 1: Students with disabilities registered with DSS are tagged in iSIS by disability
and accommodations that are received. This data will be compared to the data statisitcs
available through the Department of Education. Direct measurement.
Outcome 2: GPA data will be gathered through iSIS. Utilizing accommodations will be
gathered by tracking which new students formally requested services and
accommodations by completing a request for Letter of Accommodations. GPA’s will
them be compared between those that used services their first semester and those that did
not. Direct measurement.
Outcome 3: For each student that uses the DSS testing center, data for start and stop
times on individual tests will be gathered to determine how many students did not utilize
the extended time, but rather completed the test in the allotted time for all students.
Direct measurement.
Outcome 4: GPA data will be gathered through iSIS for those students who are eligible
for the accommodation of alternate format of text. Those students who actually requested
and used this accommodation will be gathered by DSS staff. GPA’s will then be
compared to those who used the accommodation and those that did not. Direct
measurement.
3. When will these outcomes be assessed? When and in what format will the results of
the assessment be discussed?
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[Briefly describe the timeframe over which your unit will conduct the assessment of the
learning outcomes selected for the one-year plan. For example, provide a layout of the
semesters or years on which outcomes will be assessed, and which semester/year the
results will be discussed and used to improve student learning (e.g., discussed with
faculty, advisory boards, students, etc.]
Outcome 1. This outcome will be assessed at the end of each semester for three years,
beginning December 2011. A chart will be developed showing a comparison of national
and K-State’s data in the following categories: total number of students DSS serves,
number of students by disability, and services and accommodations provided.
Outcome 2. Two pie/bar graphs will be developed for comparison. One will contain data
for the number of students who used accommodations and earned a GPA in one of the
following GPA categories: (3.5-4.0; 3.4-3.0; 2.9-2-5, 2-4-2.0, below 2.0) while the other
graph will be similar but depict number of students that did not utilize accommodations
during the semester so that a comparison can be drawn.
Outcome 3. This outcome will be assessed at the end of each semester for three years,
beginning December 2011. A table will be developed with four columns. First column is
name of the course (ie: Psychology 101), second column is the number of tests
administered for that course, third column is the number of students that utilized the
extended time (only those students that finished the test after the allotted time given to
the average student), and the last column are the names of the students who used the
extended time.
Outcome 4. This outcome will be assessed at the end of each semester for three years,
starting in December 2011. A table will show all registered students who are eligible for
the alternate format accommodation and their GPA. Those students that used the
accommodation will be highlighted and then an average GPA will be calculated for those
that utilized the accommodation and those that did not.
4. What is the unit’s process for using assessment results to improve student learning?
[Briefly describe your process for using assessment data to improve student learning.]
Outcome 1. DSS will review the results to see how we compare nationally in the number
of students we serve, how many students in each category, and services and
accommodations that we provide. DSS may need to find better ways of reaching students
and certain kinds of students such as participating in more outreach opportunities,
attending high school transition fairs, visiting the School for the Deaf. DSS may want to
take a closer look at our processes for receiving accommodations and provide satisfaction
surveys to students or faculty. Update the disability statement that faculty are asked to
include in the syllabus to be more informative.
Outcome 2. DSS will review the results to learn more about how effective our services
are to a new student, typically freshmen and whether we may need to consider some new
ideas such as offering a study skills class. Staff will share this data with new students, for
example at orientation, with the intent to help students know that prior students have
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asked for assistance and found it helpful even though they may have been afraid or
embarrassed, too.
Outcome 3. DSS will review the results and schedule appointments with those students
who regularly do not utilize the extended time in order to learn more about their needs.
Staff will review documentation as well. Maybe there is another accommodation or
service that would be more appropriate such as taking a break during an exam,
biofeedback for test anxiety, or meeting with a staff member on test taking strategies.
Outcome 4. DSS will review the results to learn how effective the accommodation is for
students. DSS staff will share the data when meeting with new students who are eligible
for the accommodation to help them better determine if the accommodation may be
helpful. Staff will meet with students who are eligible but not using the accommodation
or those that used it and then stopped to learn why. For example, if it is the software, then
other options should be researched.
Revised – Division of Student Life 2010
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