Return-Path: <nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id iA2IgXd13061; Tue, 2 Nov 2004 13:42:33 -0500 (EST) Date: Tue, 2 Nov 2004 13:42:33 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <5.1.0.14.2.20041102133524.00b9f9f8@cls.coe.utk.edu> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: Donna Brian <djgbrian@utk.edu> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-ASSESSMENT:688] White paper available: Assessment Framework for the Community X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Version 5.1 Status: O Content-Length: 6211 Lines: 106 >An Assessment Framework for the Community College - Students attend >community colleges for a variety of reasons, yet at the heart of each of >these reasons is the desire to improve skills, increase knowledge, or >change attitudes. Read about how a white paper drafted by a team of >community college practitioners and assessment industry experts establishes >an assessment framework to address these desires, in the October Learning >Abstracts. > >** To view the web version of this abstract, in printer friendly layout, go >to http://www.league.org/publication/abstracts/learning/lelabs0410.html ** > >Published monthly with Support from Datatel (www.datatel.com) >__________________________________________________________ >An Assessment Framework for the Community College > >Through the collaboration of a dedicated advisory team of community college >practitioners and assessment industry experts, the League for Innovation in >the Community College and Questionmark Corporation have facilitated a white >paper titled "An Assessment Framework for the Community College: Measuring >Student Learning and Achievement as a Means of Demonstrating Institutional >Effectiveness." > >This team worked diligently through meetings, email correspondence, and >conference calls to develop the philosophy, content, and structure of the >Assessment Framework for the Community College. Questionmark Corporation >committed resources to the project to draft the paper, facilitate meetings, >and produce the final copy. The paper is labeled Version 1.0, indicating >that the framework will continue to evolve as educators apply its concepts >and principles and identify ways in which to improve and expand its focus. > >A complete version of this white paper is available on both the League >(http://www.league.org/publication/whitepapers/0804.html) and the >Questionmark (http://questionmark.com/us/whitepapers/index.htm) websites. > >The goal of this paper is to establish an Assessment Framework for the >Community College and to contextualize that framework within the concept of >the Learning College. A major premise of the paper is that the assessment >of student learning can generate data to support continuous improvement >efforts necessary for documenting institutional effectiveness. > >It must be noted that institutional effectiveness may be measured in a >number of areas, such as graduation, retention, job placement, number and >effectiveness of student services, management and administrative structure, >and physical infrastructure; while measurement in these areas is critical, >it is intentionally not the focus of this paper. Rather, this paper focuses >on the measurement of student learning and development throughout learning >processes that take place both inside and outside the physical and virtual >classrooms. > >Students attend community colleges for a variety of reasons - to earn a >degree, earn a certificate, obtain transfer credits, develop specific >skills through one or two courses - yet at the heart of each of these >reasons is the desire to improve skills, increase knowledge, or change >attitudes. Skills, knowledge, and attitudes may be affected through >instructional programs inside physical and virtual classrooms or through >student service activities outside of the classroom setting. Regardless of >where the learning is taking place, measuring learning will help an >institution gauge whether or not students are achieving their educational >goals. If learning can be documented at the student level, then it is >possible to aggregate assessment data in ways to provide information at the >course, program, division, and institutional levels. In this way, >assessment data gathered at the student level may be used to promote >continuous improvement efforts, which over time will yield documentation >for institutional effectiveness. > >In some college settings, where the student population is constantly >changing, assessment data is not as useful at the student level as it is at >the aggregate level. In these settings, aggregate data can be used to >benefit the curriculum and faculty development opportunities important to >continuous improvement initiatives. > >While assessment data provides beneficial information to instructors and >administrators, students also benefit directly and indirectly from >assessment results. Through the appropriate use of assessments, students >receive direct feedback on their educational progress, helping them take >ownership of and understand critical next steps in their educational plan. >Students are also the beneficiaries of college, program, and course-level >continuous improvement efforts supported and sustained through the >systematic collection and analysis of assessment data. > >In support of the measurement of student learning, the assessment framework >will provide an assessment vocabulary, implementation processes, and >methods for data generation and reporting. The framework does not intend to >prescribe one assessment methodology for measuring student learning; >instead, the framework should be viewed as a set of building blocks and >best practices that can be assembled, modified, or shaped to a particular >institution's integrated approach to learning, teaching, and assessment. >Similarly, the vocabulary is intended to provide a baseline of terms. >Colleges should use the definitions to establish a common understanding >among stakeholders so that, if necessary, college-specific definitions may >be developed. The goal of the assessment framework is to provide a >foundation of terms, processes, and procedures so that all stakeholders >involved with the development or consumption of assessment results may >operate from a common understanding. >_______________________________________________________________ >** To view the web version of this abstract, in printer friendly layout, go >to http://www.league.org/publication/abstracts/learning/lelabs0410.html ** > >To SUBSCRIBE to the list of innovative educators receiving Learning >Abstracts directly, subscribe today at mailto:subscribe@league.org. Please >include your name, title, organization and address with city, state and >zip.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Thu Dec 23 2004 - 09:46:21 EST