Learning Assistance Department
Student Learning Outcomes and Assessment Process
Tutorial Center
Updated Spring 11
LAC Process
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Develop Learning Assistance Department mission statement
Develop Student Learning Outcomes for each of our academic support services and courses
Develop assessments for each of our academic support services and courses
Implement a process for continual review and refining of our mission statement and student
learning outcomes
LAC Mission Statement
Our mission is to provide a supportive environment that promotes active learning and encourages
collaboration among members of our diverse community.
Toward this goal, we assist students in achieving their academic, vocational, and personal goals
through our academic-support services: student-centered peer tutoring, college success courses,
workshops and peer-collaborative small groups; an open-access computer lab; and a grant-funded
writing project.
Student Learning Outcomes:
LERN 10 Tutor Training Course
LEARNING
OUTCOMES
ACTIVITIES
TUTOR
REFLECTIONS
#1 Purpose, Characteristics, and Goals of Tutoring
 Determine
 Purpose of tutoring
 Discuss: What is the
characteristics of a  Tutor Code of Ethics
purpose of tutoring?
good tutor
What is your goal for
 Characteristics of a
your students this
 Determine
positive tutor
semester?
personal tutor
relationship
goals
 5 Minute Paper: My
 Tutoring Cycle
goal for my students  Practice the
what I hope for them to
Tutoring Cycle
learn.
ON-GOING FACULTY
ASSESSMENT
ASSESSMENT FROM
ONLINE SURVEYS
 Are tutors aware of the
importance of focusing
on how to learn rather
than giving the correct
answer?
 Online Surveys Question #6
 Tutors and students agree
that tutors do engage
students in dialogue.
However, there is a
discrepancy of 22% with
students believing their
tutors help them find their
own answers.
 Therefore: Dialogue is
essential for active learning.
Focus tutors’ attention
towards this area to
develop self-confidence.
 Are tutors able to ask
 Online Surveys Question #3
#2 Positive Reinforcement and Questioning
 Demonstrate
 Positive
 Discuss: Why is it so
benefits &
elements of
positive
reinforcement
 Demonstrate
effective
questioning
techniques
 Define effective
study techniques




reinforcement/praise
Questioning skills
Open-ended questions
Blooms Taxonomy for
questioning
Direct study techniques
difficult to ask good
questions? What
makes a question
good?
 5 Minute Paper: How I
will incorporate
questioning and
positive reinforcement
techniques in my own
tutoring.
open-ended questions?
 Are the tutors able to
give positive
reinforcement and praise
in appropriate ways?
 Students believe their tutors
ask questions that make
them think more often than
tutors think they do. There
was a 19% difference in
student and tutor
perceptions of tutors’
abilities to ask probing
questions.
 Therefore: Provide
additional time in tutor
training for tutors to gain
self-confidence in their
questioning abilities.
 Discuss: Listen
actively to others while
they tell a bit about a
class problem they’ve
encountered. You do
the same. Tell how it
felt to listen, be
listened to.
 5 Minute Paper: How I
will incorporate active
listening and
promoting independent
learning into my
tutoring.
 Are tutors able to listen
actively and with focused
attention to their
students?
 Online Surveys Question #4
 One of the three most-used
and highly-rated tutoring
strategies by both tutors
and students.
 Tutors consistently rate this
section of training as most
interesting.
 Therefore: Continue to
emphasize this area.
 Discuss culture and
diversity in small
groups.
 5 Minute Paper: One
area I hope to change
in my tutoring sessions
as reflected in my
discussions on
diversity and
multicultural
differences.
 Are tutors able to listen
actively to, and ask
questions of, others
when they speak about
their cultures?
 Online Surveys Question
#10
 One of the least used
tutoring strategies despite
training in this area.
 Therefore: Infuse tutor
training with time to
determine how to integrate
knowledge of cultural
influences into tutoring.
 Discuss: Learning is
making connections,
left and right brain
learning styles, and
how to study smarter
using metacognitive
techniques
 5 Minute Paper: My
personal learning style
and how I intend to
adopt my style to that
of students I tutor.
 5 Minute Paper: How I
will incorporate
metacognitive techs
 Are tutors able to
articulate their personal
learning style and
address how to adapt
their style to the style of
their students?
 Are tutors able to
incorporate
metacognitive activities
into their tutoring
sessions?
 Online Surveys Question #9
 One of the least used
tutoring strategies despite
training in this area.
 Therefore: Infuse tutor
training with time to
determine how to integrate
knowledge of learning style
differences into tutoring.
#3 Active Listening and Independent Learning
 Describe
significance of
verbal and nonverbal techniques
that promote
active listening
 Demonstrate use
of active listening
techniques in
tutoring sessions.
 Verbal and nonverbal
active Listening
 Independent learning
skills
 Personal Checklist of
Listening Skills
#4 Multicultural Awareness
 Define “culture”
 Definitions of Culture
and “diversity” and
and Diversity
“cultural diversity”
 Cultural groups and
 Share personal
characteristics: beliefs,
cultural influences
values, traditions,
with others and
relationships, behaviors
listen actively to
 Assumptions
cultural influences
of others
#5 Learning Styles and Strategies
 Define “Learning”
as making
connections
 Determine
personal learning
style as right/left
brain dominant
 Describe use of
pre and post
tutoring activities
using
metacognition
techniques
 “Learning” is making
connections, connecting
what you already know
to something new that
creates learning.”
 Left brain / right brain
learning styles
 Studying smarter is
using background
knowledge,
metacognition, and
elaboration skills for pre,
during, and post tutoring
activities.
Assessment: Tutors and Tutees
LERN 10 and LERN 1000: Comparing Tutor outcomes with Student outcomes
OVERVIEW
The Learning Assistance Center developed SLO’s specific to our tutor training course during Fall
2007. First, the faculty developed outcomes, activities, tutor reflections and faculty assessments.
Then during Fall 08 we addressed the problem of evaluating the faculty assessments.
The Learning Assistance Department developed two complimentary online surveys to assess the
student learning outcomes in the tutor training course. LERN 10. We wanted to understand how
the SLO’s covered in the tutor training course were used in tutoring by tutors who completed the
tutor training course. We also wanted to understand if students who are tutored by those tutors
believe they are recipients of the same outcomes.
We have used these two surveys for eight semesters now and have learned which tutoring
strategies are most used, least used, most valued, and requires changes. Indeed, the assessment
has pointed the way to a number of changes in the course curriculum.
YEARLY UPDATES
Fall 06:
Fall 07:
Sp 08:
Fall 08:
Sp 09:
Fall 10:
Sp 11:
Revised course outlines
Developed SLOs for LERN 10 Tutor Training
Developed SLO for LERN 1000 – Supervised Tutoring
Assessed SLO’s from both surveys
Spring 10: Assessed and analyzed data from both assessments
Developed a new online surveys using Survey Monkey
Assessed data from both surveys and developed specific action plans
MOST RECENT ASSESSMENT: SPRING 11
When comparing results of LERN 10 with LERN 1000:
Areas of high agreement and high ratings: knowledge of subject, friendliness, explaining well
Areas of lowest ratings by both: Incorporate study strategies, cultural awareness
Areas of differing ratings: No significant differences.
CHANGES MADE AS A RESULT OF MOST RECENT ASSESSMENT
Improved tutor training course to provide additional information on how to explain using students
own words. Final papers from tutors following the Fall 11 LERN 10 course show a very strong
interest in developing listening skills.
LAC Tutors Survey
Spring 11
LAC Students Survey
Spring 11