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Pub Date: |
2012-07-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Reports - Descriptive |
Peer Reviewed: |
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Descriptors:
College Outcomes Assessment; Student Evaluation; Undergraduate Students; Test Results; Educational Improvement; Case Studies; Colleges
Abstract:
Most institutions are collecting evidence of student learning, but it is not clear how these results are being used to improve student outcomes. To learn more about what colleges and universities are doing to use assessment data productively to inform and strengthen undergraduate education, the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment conducted nine case studies. This report synthesizes the insights from these individual studies to discern promising practices in using information about student learning. Institutional behavior appears to be generally consistent with the Principles of Effective Assessment Practice identified by Banta and Associates (2002). For example, the case study institutions took advantage of calls for accountability to leverage internal improvement efforts, communicated widely about assessment efforts and results, and took time to reflect on their assessment activities and results. Equally important, the case study institutions aligned their assessment work with organizational structures and cultures, and focused their assessment efforts on specific problems or questions. The report concludes with lessons learned and reflective questions to help institutions advance their own assessment efforts within their specific institutional contexts. Appended are: (1) Methodology; and (2) Annotated Case Study List. [Funding for this paper was provided by the College of Education at the University of Illinois.]
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Pub Date: |
2012-03-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Reports - Evaluative |
Peer Reviewed: |
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Descriptors:
Accountability; Access to Information; Disclosure; Public Colleges; Undergraduate Students; Student Experience; National Programs; Pilot Projects; College Outcomes Assessment; Student Evaluation; Participation; Standardized Tests
Abstract:
The Voluntary System of Accountability (VSA) is a vehicle for public four-year universities to report comparable information about the undergraduate student experience via the College Portrait, a common web reporting template. The National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) was asked by the VSA to evaluate the effectiveness of the student learning outcomes pilot project within the College Portrait. The evaluation was conducted over a five-month period, October 2011 through February 2012, drawing on a variety of data sources. These included focus groups, interviews with leaders from the policy arena and regional accreditation agencies, institutional surveys, and analyses of results from the VSA-conducted survey of participating institutions, and College Portrait database statistics and Google Analytics. The authors' review found widespread agreement that the launch of the VSA in 2007 was a necessary response to the demands of the time. Accountability demands and public interests are transitory in nature and while the press for transparency persists, the environment in which the VSA exists is different from when it began. While seen as "necessary," many observers also expect the VSA to continue to evolve. They also found that the standardized tests of student learning originally approved for inclusion in the pilot lack credibility and acceptance within a broad sweep of the higher education community which, in turn, serves to undermine institutional participation in the VSA. Given this mixed picture, they asked, "Should the VSA College Portrait be continued?" With some exceptions, the response was affirmative, suggesting "mend it, don't end it" regarding the value of the VSA and the College Portrait. They recommend the VSA College Portrait be recast as a state-of-the-art electronic communication tool targeted for specific audiences, including prospective and current students, parents, and guidance counselors; alumni; faculty and staff; trustees; employers; accreditors; public policy makers; and media. They also urge that information presented on the College Portrait be presented around questions of particular interest to students and other relevant audiences to tell a contextualized, institution-specific, evidence-based story--possibly incorporating video or other media. Finally, to expand viewership of the College Portrait, they recommend consideration be given to the creation of a College Portrait template that could be adapted and used by all postsecondary institutions, public and private, community colleges and others. A common template for all of higher education, while challenging to achieve, would serve as one access point for the public and thereby attract increased viewer traffic to the site. Appended are: (1) Voluntary System of Accountability: An Overview; and (2) Methodology. (Contains 5 figures and 4 footnotes.)
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Pub Date: |
2011-00-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive |
Peer Reviewed: |
Yes |
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Descriptors:
Higher Education; Human Capital; Academic Achievement; Colleges; Reputation; High Achievement; Scores; Graduation Rate; Sustainability; School Culture; Data; Decision Making; College Administration; Cooperation; Learner Engagement; Faculty Recruitment; Staff Utilization; Information Utilization
Abstract:
A few years ago, in "Student Success in College (SSiC)," the authors profiled twenty colleges and universities that were unusually effective in fostering student engagement and success, defined as better-than-predicted scores on the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and better-than-predicted graduation rates. These schools are exemplars of what is right with higher education, and much can be learned from them. The authors contacted these schools recently to determine whether they have been able to maintain their strong performance. By and large, they have. Through 2009, their graduation rates were comparable to those in 2002, which was when the authors identified this group of institutions as worthy of in-depth study. In fact, ten schools increased their graduation rates by at least four percent, and two (George Mason University and The Evergreen State College) increased theirs by at least ten percent. NSSE scores also were comparable to those in 2002. This article illustrates some of what these institutions did to stay true to their commitments to foster student success. Using examples from a half dozen of the schools with different missions and structural features, the authors discuss some of the obstacles they overcame and the opportunities they created or took advantage of that allowed them to do this. The authors found that four key conditions for sustaining good work in hard times characterize all these institutions: (1) An ethic of positive restlessness permeates the campus; (2) Data about students and their success inform deliberations and decisions about the curriculum and other institutional priorities; (3) Academic and student affairs staff collaborate to foster student success; and (4) Campus leaders work assiduously to increase the numbers of faculty and staff who understand the importance of and become committed to student success. (Contains 11 resources.)
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Author(s): |
Kinzie, Jillian |
Source: |
National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment |
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Pub Date: |
2010-10-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Reports - Evaluative |
Peer Reviewed: |
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Descriptors:
College Outcomes Assessment; Student Evaluation; College Students; Leadership; College Faculty; Teacher Participation; Test Results; Accreditation (Institutions); Program Implementation; Administrative Organization; Administrators; Administrator Attitudes; Focus Groups; Surveys
Abstract:
The assessment of student learning outcomes is of keen interest to the federal government, accrediting bodies, and education associations and policymakers. Colleges and universities have been under increased pressured to demonstrate accountability for student learning and be more transparent about dimensions of educational quality. Although institutions are responding to these demands, it is not altogether clear where learning outcomes assessment ranks in importance on institutions' action agenda, or the extent to which colleges and universities are using assessment results to make real improvements in the quality of student learning. The National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) is a multiyear effort to understand and further the student learning outcomes agenda nationally. One of NILOA's primary activities is tracking the journey of higher education institutions responding to the challenge of outcomes assessment. To this end, NILOA conducts surveys, focus groups, and case studies to learn more about what colleges and universities are doing to assess student learning and how they are using the results. This paper highlights lessons from four focus group sessions with campus leaders--presidents, provosts, academic deans and directors of institutional research from a variety of two- and four-year institutions--regarding their perspectives on the state of learning assessment practices on their campuses. The perceptions are considered in relation to findings from the 2009 NILOA survey report, "More Than You Think, Less Than We Need: Learning Outcomes Assessment in Higher Education." The perspectives of campus leaders provide first-hand accounts of a range of student learning outcomes activities on campus and help contextualize results from the 2009 NILOA survey. Focus group findings illustrate the extent to which assessment has taken hold on campus, explicate the role of accreditation and the responsibility of faculty in student learning outcomes assessment, and showcase how assessment has been furthered on campuses. The institutional examples of innovative assessment practices, particularly those that involve faculty in meaningful ways and lead to institutional improvements, and the promising ways that assessment has been woven into administrative structures and processes, are instructive for advancing understanding of what is happening on the ground at colleges and universities. The paper concludes by articulating questions and challenges raised by campus leaders including reservations about identifying and using assessment measures, issues of transparency and communicating results, and concerns about financing assessment. As the demand for greater emphasis on student learning outcomes assessment intensifies, it is important to document both the successes and challenges associated with campus efforts to respond. Campus leaders provide an important perspective on what is most likely to help assessment efforts grow and deepen in institutions. (Contains 4 footnotes.)
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Pub Date: |
2009-00-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive |
Peer Reviewed: |
Yes |
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Descriptors:
Campuses; Institutional Research; Educational Change; Student Experience; Higher Education; Instructional Effectiveness; Workshops; Undergraduate Students
Abstract:
Assessment information should be actionable in that findings must be used to improve the student experience and educational effectiveness. Assessment is a worthwhile undertaking when campuses generate meaningful data, thoroughly consider and discuss evidence-based improvement initiatives, and ultimately use results to improve educational effectiveness. NSSE results are oriented toward such practical use. Each year, more campuses use their NSSE results in innovative ways to improve the undergraduate experience. Even so, many institutions still seem paralyzed at the point of taking action on their results. To remedy this situation, in this article the authors highlight the approaches different types of institutions have taken to move from data to action. These ideas reflect the collective wisdom of several hundred users who shared their strategies and concerns at NSSE user workshops and also stories from institutional research staff and campus contacts who responded to the authors' requests for information about using NSSE data. The authors feature Pace University as an illustrative case for successful use of NSSE results and mention examples from other institutions. They conclude with recommendations for gaining traction with NSSE results. (Contains 1 figure.)
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Pub Date: |
2008-00-00 |
Pub Type(s): |
Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive |
Peer Reviewed: |
Yes |
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Descriptors:
Higher Education; Group Unity; Educational Practices; Documentation; Ceremonies; Colleges
Abstract:
The value of establishing a strong community in institutions of higher education has been in the forefront of the thinking of educators for a number of years. As colleges and universities have grown in complexity, establishing and sustaining strong campus communities has been described as challenging and difficult. John Gardner has provided a framework for thinking about and developing communities that is instructive for colleges and universities. Among the characteristics that he has conceptualized for good communities are the following: They incorporate and value diversity, they have a shared culture, they foster internal communication, they promote caring, trust and teamwork, they have group maintenance processes and governance structures that encourage participation and sharing of leadership tasks, they foster the development of young people, and they have links to the outside world. We also believe that strong communities incorporate rituals and ceremonies that celebrate their culture. Using Gardner's framework, we have examined data from the Documenting Effective Education Practice research project (DEEP) to determine the extent to which the concept of community is incorporated and nurtured at the research sites. Our conclusion was that DEEP institutions are strong communities that incorporate the elements of community. This article provides examples for each of Gardner's elements from DEEP institutions. It also provides questions for those institutions that wish to strengthen their sense of community.
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