GENERAL EDUCATION ASSESSMENT Nathan Lindsay January 22-23, 2013 1.

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GENERAL EDUCATION ASSESSMENT

Nathan Lindsay January 22-23, 2013

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What is General Education Assessment at UMKC

What assessment would mean for you if you teach a Gen Ed course

How to get a course approved as a Gen Ed course (the Approval Form)

Presentation Overview

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Goals for Revision

General Education goals are:

a. To increase student engagement

b. To provide an opportunity to define student learning outcomes for general education

c. To facilitate transfer from other higher education institutions

d. To ensure alignment with state and national guidelines

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Which of the following is not a UMKC Gen Ed learning outcome?

1. Culture and Diversity

2. Civic Engagement

3. Communication Skills

4. Technology and Information Literacy

5. Leadership

6. Scientific Reasoning and Quantitative Analysis

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The Great Eight

General Education Learning Outcomes

1. Communication skills2. Technology and information literacy3. Scientific reasoning and quantitative analysis4. Arts and humanities5. Interdisciplinary and innovative thinking6. Culture and diversity7. Human values and ethical reasoning8. Civic and community engagement

http://www.umkc.edu/provost/gen-ed/documents/student-learning-outcomes.pdf

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Bloom’s Taxonomy

Measurement of student learning outcomes and General Education assessment across the nation’s higher learning institutions have focused on:

Two Year outcomes – Knowledge, Comprehension, and Application

Four Year outcomes – Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation

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Who is primarily responsible for General Education Assessment?

1. Faculty

2. Department Chairs

3. Assistant Vice Provost for Assessment

4. General Education Committee

5. University Assessment Committee

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Measurements

There will be a combination of:

Formative and Summative Assessments

Direct and Indirect Assessments

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Direct Assessments

Course Embedded Assessments

Final papers from discourse, anchor, and platform classes, which are graded with a rubric

Final projects from capstone courses, which are assessed with an evaluation form

Final Exams in which test items are linked to learning outcomes

Rubrics can be formulated and/or enhanced for these signature assignment evaluations at www.aacu.org/value/rubrics/ .

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Direct Assessment (cont.)

Standardized Assessment

Educational Testing Service Proficiency Profile (ETS-PP) is given to all students after they have completed 70 credit hours. Completion is a requirement of graduation. Assesses student skills in:

1. Reading

2. Writing

3. Critical Thinking, and

4. Mathematics

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Indirect Assessment

Office of Institutional Research & Planning

Each year, a survey is conducted of all graduating seniors regarding their experiences at UMKC.

Questions solicit students’ perception of their general learning that are based upon Gen Ed learning outcomes.

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Measurements

Assessing General Education at UMKC will focus on the eight learning outcomes and will consist of:

1. Course embedded assessments

2. Standardized instruments (ETS-Proficiency Profile)

3. Student surveys/reflections (Senior Student Survey)

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Curriculum Mapping  GEOC Model Proposed Courses  

Level I Courses 

Level IICourses 

Prerequisite: Discourse I

Platform Courses  

Prerequisite:Discourse I or IILevel determined by learning outcomes of the course.

Level IIICourses 

Prerequisite: Discourse II;Upper-level course required by all transfer students

Assessment

UMKC General Education Student Learning Outcomes

Anchor I (3)

Discourse I (3)

Anchor II (3)

Discourse II (3)

Platform I (3)

Platform II (3)

Platform III (3)

Platform IV-Elective (3)

Anchor III (3)

Discourse III (3)

Co-Requisites

Communication Skills   X   X           X

Technology & Information Literacy

  X   X            

Interdisciplinary & Innovative Thinking

                  X

Human Values & Ethical Reasoning

(X)           X (X)    

Culture & Diversity 

    X              

Civic & Community Engagement

                X  

Scientific Reasoning & Quantitative Analysis

(X)         X   (X)    

Arts & Humanities 

        X     (X)    

• As new General Education courses gain approval during 2012–2013, a curriculum map will be developed similar to the one seen here.

• It is important to notice that the courses will be ordered in relation to their specific learning outcomes.

• The Office of Assessment and the General Education Curriculum Committee will work to ensure these outcomes are properly assessed, and will continue to tweak all outcomes that need further development moving forward.

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Gen Ed Course Review

Initially, courses will be reviewed and/or revised on a 1-3 year, rotating basis.

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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Reporting

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:

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.

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Course Approval Form

Question 1

Which of the General Education learning outcomes does this course address?

You should mark no more than one, because whatever is marked, must be assessed.

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Course Approval Form

Question 2

How will the learning outcomes be addressed?

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? Refer to and reference the language from the Eight Learning

Outcomes http://www.umkc.edu/assessment/general-education-assessment.cfm, but make the description more specific for your course.

Course-specific learning outcomes should be written for the course, which are related to one of the Eight Learning Outcomes.

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Course Approval Form Question 3

Will the course include any of the following high-impact experiences?

Service Learning Undergraduate Research Learning Communities Study Abroad Internship Other

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Course Approval Form

Questions Specific to the Anchor Courses How will the course connect or interact with

the Discourse class? How will the course be interdisciplinary in

nature? How will instructors interact in this course

(what percentage of class time will be shared and how) and how will team-teaching be integrated into this course?

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Course Approval Form

Question 4

How will the learning outcomes be assessed? This answer requires a description of both the means and frequency of assessment

to be administered.

This might include essays, quizzes, exams, group projects, portfolios, etc.

Using the final test or paper in the course is the most typical means of assessing the learning outcome.

A rubric or an evaluation form connected to your learning outcomes is highly recommended.

If you are using a test, you should connect specific items on the test to the learning outcomes.

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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Course Approval Form

Question 5

What is the achievement target for the students’ learning outcomes?

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.

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Discuss

What are the next steps for you and your colleagues to address General Education

course design and assessment?

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Questions?