The Office of Assessment, in collaboration with ACERT, is happy to announce our spring schedule of Assessment Breakfasts. These interactive workshops meet Wednesday mornings from 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM, and are open to all faculty and staff. Come join us while we talk assessment over breakfast!

Upcoming breakfasts include:

• Assess your program: Find out what your majors are really learning (March 9 in East 1203)
• Refine your Assignments to Explore Student Writing (March 23 in East 1203)

Click for a full schedule of spring events!

And as always, don't forget to RSVP.

Question: What's the difference between program learning assessment and course learning assessment?

Answer: Program and course learning assessment both measure what students should know and be able to do at the end of a learning experience; in one the learning experience is the course, the other, the major. Of course the two are closely linked: a major is a sequence of courses. Want to learn more? Check the website for more in-depth information about course and program assessment.

If you are interested in learning more about program assessment, come to our workshop on March 9th!

The American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) recently released a report, “Trends in Learning Outcomes Assessment”, which highlights findings from their 2015 survey of chief academic officers (CAOs) from AAC&U member institutions. According to the report, higher education institutions are relying more on embedded outcomes assessment and less on standardized testing in order to evaluate student learning.

AAC&U Senior Vice President for Academic Planning and Public Engagement Debra Humphreys says,  “This survey shows that institutions are becoming far more adept at using sophisticated assessment approaches and are poised to use these approaches to make clearer how well students are attaining the outcomes everyone agrees are important for success in today's competitive global economy."

Key Findings from the Survey:

• An increasing percent of member institutions have developed learning outcomes and are assessing those outcomes across the curriculum
• More institutions are relying on assessment tools embedded in their courses, such as rubrics and capstone projects, to evaluate student learning
• Institutions are relying less on standardized tests

Are you interested in learning more about rubrics? Check out our website for more information. The AAC&U and DQP also have great examples of rubrics on everything from collaborative learning to intercultural competency.