Measures
Assessment Council Requirements
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Measures clearly described and appear appropriate.
Consistently linked to outcomes.
Multiple strategies using a combination of both direct and indirect measures.
Guiding Questions:
Are the measures worded in a way that is quantifiable?
Complete the Measurement Description by answering these six questions.
1.
2.
3.
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6.
What is the measure? At a glance, can one gain an idea of the measurement instrument and its
purpose? For instance, is it a test, portfolio, journal, or project?
Why is the measure important? Out of all the measures available to assess students in your
program, why is this one of the best measures?
When is the measure used to assess student learning (per semester, every other semester, yearly,
every other year, at the end of senior year)?
Where does the measure fit in the program? Answer this question by identifying where the
measure fits in the curriculum sequence or is it at the beginning, end, or conducted after
graduation?
Who will administer measure and then evaluate the results (multiple faculty members, department
assessment committee, or third party)?
How is the measure administered (through blackboard, paper documents, oral communication,
survey monkey)?
Examples of Direct Measures
Essay test question
Term paper
Oral presentation
Multiple-choice test question
Performance piece (e.g., musical recital)
Case analysis
Standardized test
Class project (individual or group)
Poster presentation
Examples of Indirect Measures
Focus Groups
Surveys
Attitudes
Values
Beliefs
Journals
Interviews
Portfolios
Examples of measures approved by the Assessment Council
Comprehensive
Exam
Case Studies
A comprehensive exam will be taken annually at the end of the final core course
in our sequence (MET 480). This exam will assess the knowledge base acquired
in the majority of our learning outcomes. The purpose of the exam is to evaluate
the extent of comprehension and long-term retention of chosen learning
outcomes. MET 480 is typically taken in the second semester of the senior year.
All faculty will contribute to designing, scoring, and revising the exam. The exam
will be multiple-choice, in order to eliminate subjectivity in evaluation and ensure
year-to-year comparison.
Students will complete meteorological case studies of a historical weather event,
and will present them in both oral and written form. Students will present weekly
weather discussions and analyze cases within groups in MET 345, taken during
the second semester of the junior year. At the end of MET 450, typically taken
first semester of the senior year, students will conduct more detailed oral
presentation and written reports as individuals. This will be the assessed activity.
Evaluation of oral case studies in MET 450 will be conducted by all three tenuretrack faculty. Performance will be assessed according to a rubric that will assess
the quality of student’s ability to integrate concepts learned in a variety of courses
into an analysis of a significant weather event.
Group Project
Students will complete a group project in which all students will run a numerical
weather forecast model and evaluate sensitivity to specific parameters. Students
will summarize their findings in a written report. Students will do this in MET
480, the final course in our sequence. MET 480 synthesizes information that has
been learned throughout the curriculum, hence this course serves as a capstone
experience, with this project as a focal point. Successful completion of the project
will be evaluated by a rubric. The rubric addresses the student’s ability to:
configure and execute the numerical model, display results graphically, and
perform a comparative analysis to other student's results.