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ACADEMIC DEGREE
ASSESSMENT &
GENERAL EDUCATION
ASSESSMENT
Nathan Lindsay
Arts & Sciences Faculty Meeting
March 12, 2013
Point #1
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Point #2: Follow-Up on Degree
Assessment Plans
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Have you reviewed your program’s assessment
feedback from the University Assessment Committee
(sent in December or January)?
Have you implemented your action plans from last
year?
Have you collected assessment data this year, and
are you prepared to develop new action plans?
Are you working to assess all of your learning
outcomes in a 3-5 year period?
Point #3: General Education
Assessment Revisions Needed
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General Education courses that were “conditionally
approved” are required to resubmit their updated
proposal to the General Education Curriculum
Committee.
Group trainings for improving Gen Ed Course
assessment plans will be offered in FaCET this
spring. You can also set up a meeting with Leah
Gensheimer or Nathan Lindsay.
Point #3: General Education
Assessment Revisions Needed (cont.)
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Question 2 on the Course Proposal Form
How will the learning outcomes be addressed?
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Looking for specifics about how the course meets
or is related to the learning outcome listed in the previous question.
How is the content of the course conceptually linked to the
learning outcome?
What content or activities are related to the learning outcome?
Have you developed course-specific learning outcomes that are
directly related to the General Education outcome?
Example Learning Outcomes
from Discourse II
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Students will produce, perform, and analyze collegelevel, oral and written texts that are based on sustained
academic research.
Students will continue to develop their understanding of
discourse analysis and language awareness in the
context of a range of discursive forms.
Students will interpret and synthesize college-level
scholarship that addresses how diverse discourse
communities define, evaluate, and transform individual,
institutional, and cultural identities.
Point #3: General Education
Assessment Revisions Needed (cont.)
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Question 4 on the Course Proposal Form
How will the learning outcomes be assessed?
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Choose a test, paper, or other assignment that will be used for data
collection
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You need to describe a rubric that you will be using to assess the General
Education outcome on the paper/assignment, or to identify specific test
questions that directly measure the General Education outcome
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Do NOT list course grades. The data you collect should give you insights
regarding where students are stronger and weaker (in terms of specific
sub-outcomes measured on your test or rubric).
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What you will be reporting are the average class scores on the subsections of the rubric, or the averages on the individual test items or
groups of items (along with your analysis of these scores)
Example Rubric from Discourse II
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Learning Objectives
Novice
Developing
Proficient
Advanced
Use written and oral
discourse to develop
and present
meaningful and
interesting ideas that
show the students’
voices, a willingness
to take intellectual
risks, and an ability
to enter an academic
conversation.
The student can form
a fundamental
primary claim and
support that claim
through cogent subclaims (reasons) and
supporting examples
(evidence). These
claims may be
broadly applied,
and sub-claims may
relate loosely to the
primary claim. The
expression of these
claims demonstrates
a developing
application of
academic language
and conventions.
The student meets the
Primary standard
and begins to focus
primary claims to
account for
differences in cultural
identities. Sub-claims
and supporting
examples show are
related to the
primary claim. The
student’s discourse
conforms to
academic language
use and conventions
most of the time.
The student meets
the Developing
standard and their
claims are focused
and specific, with
subclaims and
evidence directly
supporting primary
claims. The student’s
discourse conforms
to academic
language use and
conventions all of
the time.
The student meets the
Proficient standard
and their claims are
highly focused and
specific and account
for differences in
audience and outlook.
Supporting claims and
evidence is drawn
from a wide pool of
examples and is
directly relevant to
the primary claims.
The student shows a
great facility of
language use,
embracing academic
conventions while
maintaining their own
individual modes of
expression.
Point #3: General Education
Assessment Revisions Needed (cont.)
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
Question 5
What is the achievement target for the
students’ learning outcomes?
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Includes expectations of general performance and
percentage of students expected to perform at higher
levels.
The achievement target is usually between 70-90%,
and should be a goal to strive for.
Again, these are not course grades, because a grade
usually represents more than students’ performance
on a specific learning outcome.
Reporting
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Each year, instructors who are teaching a Gen Ed course will
submit the following details of their assessment plan in a
report to the Assistant Vice Provost for Assessment:
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Learning outcomes
Measurements
Achievement targets
Findings, and
Action plans
Assessment findings are not required for each semester, but
should be collected at least once a year.
Based on the individual course reports, summaries of the
assessments for each of the 8 Learning Outcomes across
campus will be submitted in WEAVE each year by the
Assistant Vice Provost.
Gen Ed Course Review
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Initially, courses will be reviewed on a
rotating business, every 1-3 years.
Determination in the review process will
primarily focus on the three W’s:
1. Whether and/or how learning outcomes are being
assessed
2. Whether students’ performance is meeting
expectations
3. Whether faculty are using assessment results to make
improvements in their pedagogy and curriculum
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Questions?