Academic Quality Improvement Program - Assessment of Student Learning Action Project
September 6, 2005
AQIP Action Project Update
1. Describe the past year's accomplishments and the current status of this Action Project.
Summary of 2004-2005 accomplishments:
Spring 2004 Assessment of Student Learning survey results were distributed to the campus community via the Assessment of Student Learning Web page as a follow-up to benchmark surveys distributed in Spring 2003.
- Spring 2005 Assessment of Student Learning surveys were distributed to
a)Faculty and Staff
b) Students
c) College Council, Board of Regents, and Deans.
Spring 2005 Assessment of Student Learning surveys were analyzed; results were compared to Spring 2003 benchmark results.
Resources were allocated to appoint Assessment Director and four Assessment Consultants representing curricular and co-curricular divisions
Respondents to the 2005 assessment survey continue to indicate that Augsburg does not provide sufficient financial support for assessment. In relationship to the benchmark data collected in 2003 fewer respondents indicated that Augsburg provides sufficient financial support in terms of materials (22% to 15%); the number of respondents indicating that Augsburg provides sufficient financial support in terms of release time remained the same (10%). However, there was a slight improvement in the number of respondents who indicated that Augsburg provides sufficient financial support in terms of hiring consultants (12% to 18%).
Assessment Director and Consultants assisted departments/programs on assessment work and provided feedback to them.
Assessment of student learning template and annual report format were revised in response to feedback; both were posted on the Assessment of Student Learning Web Page.
Augsburg Core Collaboratives made progress on assessment of student learning plans for component parts of the Augsburg Core Curriculum (see General Education Action Project Update).
Assessment Director, Academic Dean, Director of General Education, and Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning worked together to coordinate work on the assessment of majors/co-curricular programs and the assessment of general education (work supported by a grant from the Bush Foundation).
Assessment Committee was engaged in the review of Chapter 1 "Helping Students Learn" of the Systems Portfolio that was submitted May 15, 2005.
Work continued to enhance the Assessment of Student Learning Web Page.
Eighty-four percent (38/45) of the departments and programs in the Academic and Student Affairs Division have developed plans for assessment of student learning. The total number of departments/programs required to submit plans has been modified from 59 to 45 since September 2004. 14 departments/programs have been combined into 3 areas (Student Affairs, International Programs, and Academic Enrichment). Each area will develop an assessment of student learning plan that encompasses the work of all departments in the area. Each area will submit one assessment plan/report. Forty-five percent (17/38) of departments and programs with an assessment plan are currently using data to make decisions. Eighteen percent (7/38) are still in the process of collecting data and thirty-seven percent (14/38) have not yet begun to collect data. Sixty-eight percent (26/38) of departments and programs with plans submitted an annual assessment report.
Augsburg continues to make strides in developing a culture of assessment in general education/majors/co-curricular departments, but it appears that, for many departments, work on major field assessment in 2005-2006 became secondary to general education assessment. The immediacy of the demands of the Bush Grant supporting this assessment effort required many departments to shift their focus due to limitations on faculty time.
Judging from the 2005 assessment survey, one consequence of this shift was a decline in the number of faculty and staff who reported an understanding of the meaning (63% from 71%), goals (57% from 74%), characteristics (39% from 49%), and value (71% from 75%) of assessment.
The number of people responding to the 2005 survey increased from 2004 (98 from 64). This indicates that general awareness of assessment is increasing and we view this as positive.
In addition, the requirement of completing the Systems Portfolio by May made it necessary for the Academic Dean and Assessment Director to make this project a priority; this made it difficult to assist departments/programs in their assessment of student learning within particular major fields. We believe both reasons account for the lower than expected percentage of departments/programs that are reporting the use of assessment data to make decisions in the major/co-curricular programs, as well as the slightly lower scores on the 2005 assessment survey.
2. Describe how the institution involved people in work on this Action Project.
Assessment of student learning is a high profile activity at Augsburg. All departments/programs in the Academic and Student Affairs Division have been asked to develop an assessment of student learning plan. Augsburg Core Collaboratives have engaged over sixty faculty and staff in developing general education assessment of student learning plans.
The Assessment Director, Assessment Consultants, Assessment Committee, Bush Grant Assessment Coordinator, Director of General Education, Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, and the Academic Dean provide leadership in the area of assessment. Faculty meeting reports, Web Page postings, and one-on-one meetings with individuals and collaboratives/departments are used to maintain attention on developing an assessment culture.
3. Describe your planned next steps for this Action Project.
We are extending the Assessment of Student Learning Action Project to a fourth year because there is much to be done that will be aided by the focus provided by this Action Project. Plans include:
Assessment Committee/Director/Consultants continue to coordinate the work on assessment of majors/programs with that of general education assessment of student learning so that work moves forward on each front (also look for ways to integrate this effort for many departments).
Assessment Committee/Director/Consultants work with departments/programs to devise strategies to advance the work of assessment and the use of data to make curricular and co-curricular decisions.
Academic Dean seeks additional release time for Assessment Director to provide more time for attention to the work of assessment.
Augsburg extends Action Project to Year 4 using the "stretch targets" outlined for Year 3 that have not yet been realized.
Academic Dean seeks professional opportunities for Assessment Director and Assessment Consultants, including attendance at IUPUI Assessment Institute October 2005.
Academic Dean distributes Assessment of Student Learning surveys - Year 4 (Spring 2006).
Assessment Committee incorporates Appraisal Feedback Report on the assessment of student learning into planning model.
4. Describe an "effective practice(s)" that resulted from work on this Action Project.
Assessment Consultants who have expertise in disciplinary/professional areas have been of great assistance to the Assessment Director and departments/programs. Three faculty members representing Humanities/Fine Arts, Natural and Social Sciences, and Professional Studies, and a staff member from the Academic and Student Affairs Division are currently serving as consultants. The Consultants bring focus to the work of their respective areas and are responsive to the differing assessment needs of faculty/staff across a variety of disciplines. They assist the Assessment Director by providing her with insights into these needs, by meeting with departments/programs, and by being a point of contact for their colleagues on an ongoing basis. We believe this practice has advanced the College's work on assessment by creating communication channels among colleagues who may have mutual concerns and questions.
5. What challenges, if any, are you still facing in regards to this Action Project?
Augsburg's biggest challenge is coordinating the assessment work of majors/programs and general education. Demands on faculty and staff time are high. The leadership group for assessment of student learning needs to work with departments and programs to meet their needs in developing/implementing assessment of student learning plans in both areas (an integrated whole in many departments). We did not experience the advancement in the use of assessment of student learning data within majors that we had hoped to see this year. Next year we will focus attention on recapturing the momentum on assessment of student learning that the College experienced in 2003-2004.
6. If you would like to discuss the possibility of AQIP providing you help to stimulate progress on this action project, explain your need(s) here and tell us who to contact and when.
We do not need additional assistance at this time.