Program Level Outcomes
Assessment
PLO Assessment Cycle
Assessment
Apply
change
Discussion
&
Plan
PLO Assessments
• Require a “unique” assessment
– Directly assess the PLO with its own assessment tool
• Determines what students are capable of at the end of a
program
– Use a “capstone” course in the program
– Do not use the same assessment tool as the SLOs
– Multiple tools can be applied to the same assignment
Methods of Assessing a PLO
• Existing course assignments
• “Capstone” activities
• Field experiences
• Exams that test a breadth of knowledge
• These methods can be embedded or
additional for the assessment
• Existing Course Assignments
– Use an assignment in a course at the end of a program
• Research papers
• Projects
– The assignment should demonstrate skills and knowledge
developed from an entire program of study
– Can use an assignment that is also use for assessing a SLO
• Done by using two different rubrics
– One rubric for the SLO
– Second PLO rubric for the PLO
– Advantages of embedded course assignments
SLO Rubric
PLO Rubric
Assignment
SLO Result
PLO Result
SLO Assessment Rubric
PLO Assessment Rubric
Rating Scale Rubric
• “Capstone” Experiences
– Holistic activities that students are required to
complete at the end of a program
• “Capstone” class with holistic assignments
• Research papers/projects
• Performances
– Also assessed with a rubric
• Field Experiences
– Internships
– Service-learning activity
– Practicum
– Research
• Assessed based on supervisor evaluation
– Develop an easy-to-use rubric for the supervisor
• Exams
– Exams that demonstrate a breadth of knowledge
– There are published exams for many disciplines
– The department can develop their own
• Give the exam in a course at the end of the program
• The exam should be broad based and represent the
PLO
Assessment Overview
• Levels of Assessment
– Course SLO
– Program PLO
– GELO
– ILO
• Mapping vs. Unique(Authentic) Assessment
After Gathering the Data
• Programs need to:
– Discuss the data amongst colleagues
– Plan for course and program improvement
– Document the discussion
• Program Review reports
• Public website
• Get started
– Pick a course
• Should be a course at the end of the program
• Do not use an introductory course
– These students are not completing your program
– Pick an assignment and an assessment
• Should be appropriate for the PLO