Assessing Progress on the
Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP)
Department of Academic Effectiveness and Assessment
Critical Thinking Retreat – Spring 2012
Progress on the QEP
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
Review QEP timelines
Define Critical Thinking
QEP Initiatives and Goals
Progress and Areas of Opportunity
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Review of QEP Timelines
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Efforts began in Spring 2008 at program levels
 As of 2011, all disciplines institution-wide (33) have
participated in learning to teach Critical Thinking (via
Champions and ARTs)
2008
Instructional
Portfolios
First Cohort: 4
programs
2009
Instructional
Portfolios
2nd Cohort: 5
programs
2010
Instructional
Portfolios
3rd Cohort: 15
Programs
2011
Instructional
Portfolios
4th Cohort: 9
Programs
 Currently implementing plan for last year of QEP
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Defining Critical Thinking
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 QEP Focus: Enhancing student learning by improving
students’ ability to think critically.
 SPC’s definition of Critical Thinking:
“Critical thinking is the active and systematic
process of communication, problem-solving,
evaluation, analysis, synthesis, and reflection, both
individually and in community, to foster
understanding, support sound decision-making,
and guide action.”
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Defining Critical Thinking
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 The outcomes of SPC’s definition of critical thinking are
intended to:
 Foster understanding
 Support sound decision-making
 Guide Action
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QEP Initiatives
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Initiative #1: Student Success (primary focus of the QEP)
 Initiative #2: Professional Development (culminates with
student success)
 Initiative #3: Critical Thinking Resources (supports
student success)
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Initiative #1:
Student Success
Quality Enhancement Committee Meeting
Initiative #1: Student Success
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Goal 1-1: Enhance students’ critical thinking skills through “teaching
for critical thinking” classroom activities across the curriculum.
Direct Measures:
• Critical Thinking Assessment Test (CAT)
• ETS iSkills (due to modifications, iSkills is no longer being used)
• ETS Measure of Academic Proficiency and Progress (MAPP)
• Assessment Rubric for Critical Thinking (ARC)
• General Education Assessment
Indirect Measures:
• Recent Alumni Survey
• Employer Survey
• Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE)
• Student Survey of Instruction
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Initiative #1: Student Success
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Goal 1-2: Develop and use general and discipline-specific
assessment tools and strategies for measuring students’ critical
thinking skills.
 Faculty Champion Portfolios, Academic Round Tables, Scenarios
 Goal 1-3: Collect student artifacts through ePortfolio.
 Feasibility study reviewed current LMS (Angel) and others. Determined that
the ePortfolio would not meet our needs. CT subcommittee of Ed Oversight
recommended using ePortfolio allocated funds towards CCSSE.
 Goal 1-4: Implement critical thinking programs supported by key
student organizations.
 Great debate of 2008 & 2012, SPC Reads, “The Cuban Guy”, Extreme
Entrepreneurship Tour. WITS forms for Student Life and Leadership and
students.
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Student Success: Opportunities
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Administer MAPP (institution-wide direct measure, last administered in 2007)
 Now ETS Proficiency Profile, both LD and UD students fall 2011, LD again Spring 2012
 Consider critical thinking items on the SSI
 Will be added to data reported in QEP
 Documentation of student journaling (V. Reflection) (aligned to ePortfolios, also
single demonstration aligned to “foster understanding”)
 Still outstanding
 Increase documentation of Critical Thinking programs/events and feedback
 In progress, currently assessing students participating in college-wide Great Debate
 “Clean up” of faculty champion portfolios; explicitly document discipline-specific
assessment examples
 Conduct audit of all SPC programs (curricular and others) (SACS IE Reviewer’s
template)
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Student Success: Opportunities
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
Presented QEP update to Quality Enhancement Committee (QEC) Sept 2011 and held
session during All College Day 2011. Recommendations included:
 Conduct a second scoring session of ethics papers assessed with the ARC in 11-12
 Scheduled for Friday, May 18th
 Focus on documenting students’ ability to demonstrate reflection (this is often
misinterpreted by students as summarizing what they learned about the content.)
How to do this? Needs to be discussed.
 Amplify efforts to work with Student Life coordinators, others sponsoring student
activities. What are the MLOs of the event, how do they relate to CT? How do we
assess?
 Collect additional feedback from program stakeholders, particularly advisory board
members, regarding needs of employers relating to CT (Joint Advisory Committee
meetings, Oct 2011)
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Initiative #2:
Professional Development
Quality Enhancement Committee Meeting
Initiative #2:
Professional Development
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Goal 2-1: Provide professional development opportunities to assist
faculty in developing class activities to support teaching for critical
thinking.
 Thirteen Critical Thinking Institutes and retreats, CAT scoring workshops, ARC
scoring workshops, Online seminars, evaluations
 Goal 2-2: Develop in-house critical thinking expertise (i.e., faculty
champions) using the “train-the-trainer” approach.
 Faculty Champion meetings, six external experts on campus, online training seminars,
development of RLO and assessment checklists
 Goal 2-3: Institute Academic Roundtables (ARTs) to investigate
“teaching for critical thinking” strategies
 ART Beach Retreats, meetings with Faculty Champions, evaluations by ARTs
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Professional Development:
Opportunities
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 In fall 2011, advanced CT seminars will be held as part of the CT Institute, where
disciplines will have individual meetings to discuss the day's presentations and
discuss how it applies to their discipline.
 Completed, will also occur fall 2012
 In 2011-12, QEP office will work with CETL to get in touch with new faculty about CT
 Look at C&I 3-yr course review process for opportunity to develop a “teaching for
critical thinking” checklist as a tool for faculty to use when modifying courses or class
activities. Checklist for activities are being developed in partnership with CETL.
 During 2011-12, survey SPC faculty regarding availability and effectiveness of
professional development opportunities.
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Initiative #3:
Critical Thinking Resources
Quality Enhancement Committee Meeting
Initiative #3:
Critical Thinking Resources
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Goals 3-1 (electronic resources), 3-2 (RLOs), and 3-4
(CT Resource Centers):
 Gateway Website, instructional portfolios, partnership with WITS,
designated space at each campus library, as well as online. Approx 30
RLOs as of 2010-2011.
 Goal 3-3: Contribute to the critical thinking literature…
 Faculty champion presentations at CT Institutes, 33 different
instructional portfolios that include discipline-specific research.
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Critical Thinking Resources:
Opportunities
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Survey faculty champions to identify RLOs they implemented in
their courses.
 Consider focus groups of students
 Survey SPC faculty to obtain feedback regarding Faculty
Champions’ portfolios (literature, activities, resources)
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How You Can Get Involved
Assessing Progress on the Quality Enhancement Plan
 Participate in a scoring workshop:
 Assessment Rubric for Critical Thinking (ARC): Friday, May 18th, 8:30 – 4 pm,
District Office - Consular Conference Room 102 (ethics papers)
 Critical thinking Assessment Test (CAT): Friday, April 20th, 8:30 – 4 pm, District
Office - Consular Conference Room 102 (math, Vet Tech courses)
 Use the ARC to assess your activities
 Implement journaling as a way to capture students’ ability to reflect
 Identify MLOs in your courses/programs/activities that relate to critical
thinking… how do you determine if students are improving? Assess!
 Visit SPC’s Gateway Website:
http://www.spcollege.edu/criticalthinking/resources/initiative.htm
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