Assessment 101 November 27, 2001

1. Assessment 101 November 27, 2001 An Introduction to Assessment in Student Affairs

2. Overview Topics Covered in Today’s Session • Definitions of Assessment and Related Terms • Key Stakeholders in Assessment • Benefits of Assessment in Student Affairs • Assessment Myths and Misconceptions • A Comprehensive Model of Assessment • Guidelines for Good Assessment Practice • Basic Steps in Implementing Assessment • Assessment Resources

3. What is Assessment?A Background Knowledge Probe • What does the term “assessment” mean to you? • What synonyms come to mind when you hear the term ‘assessment’? • What questions, concerns, or misgivings do you have about assessment? • What benefits might there be as a result of assessing your program and/or students?

4. Definitions of AssessmentSchuh & Upcraft (2001) • Assessment is any effort to gather, analyze, and interpret evidence which describes institutional, divisional, (program,) or agency effectiveness • It includes... • assessment of student learning outcomes • assessment of cost effectiveness • assessment of “client” satisfaction • assessment of compliance with professional standards • assessment of comparisons to other institutions • It is not restricted to assessment of students, but includes assessment of faculty, staff, administrators, parents, employers, graduates ….

5. Definitions of Assessment (AAHE, 1995) • Assessment is an ongoing process aimed at understanding and improving student learning • It involves ... • making expectations RE learning explicit and public; • setting appropriate criteria and high standards for learning quality; • systematically gathering, analyzing, and interpreting evidence to determine how well performance matches those expectations and standards; and • using the results to document, explain, and improve learning and performance

6. Definitions of Assessment(the key underlying questions) • What do we expect our students to know, to be able to do, and to value as a result of completing our program? • Do our students know, do, and value these things? • Are they learning what we want them to learn? • How do we know? • If they do NOT know, do, and value these things, how could our program be changed to improve their learning?

7. Definitions of AssessmentA Glossary of Related Terms • Evaluation • any effort to use assessment evidence to improve program, departmental, divisional, or institutional effectiveness (Upcraft and Schuh, 1996) • Measurement • a reference to the particular methods involved in gathering assessment evidence • including interviews, focus groups, surveys, portfolios, tests • sometimes divided into qualitative vs. qualitative, or indirect vs. direct methods

8. Assessment &Related Terms: A Program Evaluation Model

9. Why Assess?Stakeholders in Assessment • Accreditation commissions & state legislators… • Administrators and Staff... • Faculty members... • Graduate training programs and employers... • Parents… • Students… • (prospective, current, exiting, alumni)

10. Why Assessment in Student Affairs? • “…without assessment, student affairs is left only to logic, intuition, moral imperatives, goodwill, or serendipity in justifying its existence…” • Upcraft & Schuh, 1996

11. Why Assessment in Student Affairs? • Relationship to the Mission of the College • Does our program help to improve students’ intellectual, personal, and spiritual development? • Role in Strategic Planning, Budget and Policy Development, Decision-Making • Survival • Quality • Affordability • Accreditation

12. Why Assess Now? • Concerns about accountability • Perceptions about learning and higher education • Tight budgets and markets • Savvy consumers • Contemporary business practices (TQM, etc) • Educational reform

13. Assessment Myths and Misconceptions • It’s a Passing Fad • It’s Not My Job or Concern • You Can’t Assess What We Do • I Don’t Have the Time to Do Assessment • I Don’t Have the Expertise to Do Assessment • Assessment Might Reveal “Bad” News

14. A Comprehensive Model of Assessment Includes... • Tracking Who Uses Services, Programs, Facilities • Assessing Student (Client) Needs • Assessing Satisfaction with Services, Programs, Etc • Assessing Campus Climate, Student Culture... • Assessing Program and Service Outcomes • Benchmarking: Comparisons w Other Institutions • Assessing Effectiveness Against Standards • Assessing Cost Effectiveness

15. Guidelines for Good Practice:What Accreditors Expect • Links to Mission, Goals, Objectives • Involvement of All Segments of Campus • Multiple Measures; Assessment of Cognitive, Behavioral, Affective Domains of Learning • Evidence of Use in Improving Programs • Ongoing Assessment & Re-Evaluation of Assessment Program • Linkages Between Assessment and Planning/Budgeting Process

16. Good Practice: Begin with a Plan • Essential Components of Assessment Plans • Goals, Objectives, Intended Outcomes • Methods,Techniques,Target Groups • Time Line • Provisions for Administration of Plan • Provisions for Use/Sharing of Findings • Evaluation of the Assessment Program

17. Basic Steps in Assessment(What to do and when to do it) • Identify your program goals and objectives • Define the problem; identify information necessary to help solve it • Determine where to get the necessary information • Determine whom to study and when to study them • Determine the best assessment methods, what instruments will be used, how the data will be collected and who will collect it • Determine how the data will be coded and analyzed; analyze the data • Report the results effectively • Revise assessment objectives, criteria, and methods, etc., as appropriate

18. Assessment in Student Affairs • “…good practice in student affairs occurs when student affairs personnel ask, ‘what are students learning from our programs and services, and how can their learning be enhanced?’…” • ACPA and NASPA Principles of Good Practice for Student Affairs, 1997

19. Guidelines for Good PracticeSome Final Words of Wisdom • Tie assessment to a few key objectives • intended learning outcomes, key problems, OR primary strengths • Choose assessment methods wisely • Pilot test if possible • Assess what you intend to use • Assess at key decision points • Make appropriate use of existing resources • Keep it simple

20. More Final Words of Wisdom • “…assessment in student affairs is no longer a ‘luxury’ that is done only after all other priorities have been taken care of. Assessment is now a necessity that demands our highest priority…” • Upcraft & Schuh, 1996

21. Assessment Resources • Books • Schuh, J.H, & Upcraft, M.L. (2001). Assessment practice in student affairs: An applications manual, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass • Palomba, C.A. & Banta, T.W. (1999). Assessment Essentials, • Nichols, J. O. (1995). The departmental guide and record book for student outcomes assessment and institutional effectiveness. New York: Agathon Press. • Web Sites • http://www2.acs.ncsu.edu/UPA/survey/resource.htm • Local Resources • Office of Institutional Effectiveness; Assessment Committees

22. Need Help?On Which Topic(s)?: Check all that apply • Involving/Motivating Staff, Students in Assessment • Identifying or Developing Program Goals, Objectives, and Intended Learning Outcomes • Methods of Assessment and Criteria for Success • General Guidelines For Selecting Measures • Strengths and Weaknesses of Various Methods • Choice & Implementation of a Specific Method • Analysis and Interpretation of Assessment Findings • Means of Reporting and Using Assessment Information • Other (Development of Timelines, Administrative Provisions, including record keeping, etc.) • Optional (Name or Program: )

23. Concluding Questions:A One-Minute paper • What is the most important thing you learned today about assessment? • What remains most unclear or confusing to you about assessment at this point?