Student Learning Assessment How-to’s and Resources

To identify and/or create Learning Outcomes for programs, courses and administrative units and to understand how all fit into a curriculum, please read the resources below:

More specifically these resources will assist you to:

• Identify Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
  • Writing Your Own or Prescribed?
  • Aligning PLOs
    • Prescribed Standard/Competency/Outcome List(s)
    • University Learning Outcomes (ULOs)
  • Identify Administrative Outcomes (if any)
    • “End of Program” Goals (Retention, Graduation, Post-grad Admission, etc.)
  • Understand how Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) Fit with PLOs
    • Using PLOs as CLOs in Capstone or other Culminating Courses
    • Aligning CLOs to PLOs
  • Include Learning Outcomes on Syllabi 

To explore how courses and outcomes fit together to create a “map” of a program’s curriculum and how to articulate this on a syllabus, please see resources below: 

More specifically these resources will assist you to:

• Align Required and Elective Courses to applicable PLOs
  • Excel Worksheet
  • Mapping scheme that works best for your program:
  • “Touches” vs. Assessed, Contributes, Introduce/Reinforced/Mastered
    • Including “Mapping” in Syllabi
• Creating PDFs for Syllabi Appendices 

To learn to identify properties of direct and indirect measures that are most valid and reliable for a course, program or administration outcome, please read below: 

More specifically these resources will assist you to:

• Align Required and Elective Courses to applicable PLOs
• Create SLOs that speak to PLOs where assignments/activities are measurable, valid and reliable.
  • Identify the properties of Direct and Indirect Measures
    • Direct Measures include exams, rubrics for written (including discussion boards, reflections, etc.) and oral communication (including speeches, 2^nd language communication, evaluation forms for clinical or artistic measures, etc.
    • Indirect Measures include survey tools, advisory/focus groups, exit interviews, etc.
    • Other types of measures include Post Graduation Success, Conference Presentations, Certification Exam Pass Rates, Graduation/Retention Rates, etc.
  • Identify best practices regarding employing both Direct and Indirect Measures
• Identify the pros and cons of why to employ what type of measurement tool for an outcome

To explore how to collect, document and analyze data from direct and indirect measures in student learning assessment, please read below:

 Attendees will be able to:

To explore how to promote continuous improvement by identifying an action plan for direct and indirect measures, please read below:

 More specifically these resources will assist you to:

• Action Planning for Continuous Improvement
  • Identify the Action Plan per measure based on Assessment Findings:
    • Student Learning Data is acceptable and monitoring will continue
    • Student Learning Data is not-acceptable and action will need to be taken
    • Student Learning Data is unreliable or a process change is needed

 To create Syllabi with all applicable University, Program and Course information present, please see the resources below:

More specifically these resources will assist you to:

• Create Syllabi with all applicable University, Program and Course information present, including answering the following questions:
  • Does the course description on the syllabus match the course description in the current bulletin?
  • Are there Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) listed on the syllabus?
  • Is this course a part of an academic program and if so, does the course appear on the program’s curriculum map in Taskstream?
  • Do the PLOs listed on the syllabus match the markings on the map in Taskstream?
• Include COVID19 and other required and suggested University-wide statements in all syllabi

 Syllabi Models:

 Curriculum Map Alignment Examples:

Goal of Workshop: To establish long and short-term plans for continuous improvement processes that achieves implementation fidelity while adhering to A-State’s Assessment Manual processes and procedures

 Workshop Outcomes: By the end of the workshop and assigned tasks you will be able to:

• Construct a long-term continuous improvement plan (i.e., 4-year plan)
• Develop a short-term continuous improvement plan (i.e., 1 semester or academic year)
• Discuss pitfalls of implementation fidelity

Short-term VS Long-term Assessment Planning Workshop Video (YouTube Video)

Short-term VS Long-term Assessment Planning Powerpoint Presentation

Example One Year Assessment Plan

Blank One Year Assessment Plan