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Assessment day --
Bratwurst, burgers well earned
We've gotten results back from the CAAP (Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency) reading test we gave to 66 sophomores April 2 in connection with our General Education assessment day, and Student Affairs Dean Kevin Broeckling is tabulating and analyzing results of the survey of student wants, needs and attitudes we gave to 85 other students. The data are preliminary at this stage, but on the Assessment Committee we're encouraged by how well it went. In a word (well, two words):
The CAAP results came late last week, and today (April 28) a letter went out to the sophomores who took the test. Cosigned by Dean of the College Jeff Mueller and by me, as assessment committee chair, it says, in part: "You have our heartfelt thanks for helping get us off to a good start.
"While this year's CAAP test results are very preliminary, we were encouraged by two patterns we noticed in the overall, or aggregate, scores for SCI students. Taken together as a group, our students scored slightly higher than the national cumulative percentage for all sophomores in two-year colleges (with correct answers of 61.7 percent for the SCI group as opposed to 60.9 percent nationwide). Just as important, perhaps even more important, 63 of the 66 students who took the test reported they 'tried my best' or 'gave moderate effort' to do well on it. Again, we are most grateful to you."
As assessment chair, I was especially encouraged by how many of our students indicated they took the test seriously. Other colleges and universities sometimes report that students blow off assessment testing because they don't see any benefit to themselves in taking the tests. At SCI we gambled that if we explained how assessment fits into our planning and accreditation process, our students would take part because they want to do the right thing. We also decided we'd let them know how much we appreciate them by having a free food day right after the testing period. Not a bribe, but a way of saying thanks. It now looks like our gamble paid off, and the students' brats and burgers were well earned.
A special word to faculty: Quite a few students told me their instructors had taken time in class to explain assessment, and say how important it is to SCI. Again, it showed just how well we can work together - all of us, students, faculty and staff alike - to meet a common goal.
We have quite a lot yet to do as we get our General Education assessment plan up and running again (starting by looking more closely at the data we're beginning to collect and seeing if we can draw any conclusions from them yet). As we learn more, we'll let you know what we learn. Watch upcoming issues of Nuts & Bolts.
AQIP sessions May 8
Please mark your calendars. Eileen Kolich, associate provost for academic affairs at Benedictine University, will visit the SCI campus on Thursday, May 8, to talk with faculty, administration and staff about the Academic Quality Improvement Program, a system of planning for continuous improvement that the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association recommends as an alternative to the 10-year accreditation cycle. Dr. Kolich, who is in charge of AQIP at Benedictine, will meet with staff the morning of May 8 and with faculty at 1:30 p.m. in Dawson 225. "As we move into the partnership with Benedictine, we intend to receive accreditation for North Central through the AQIP process," said Dean Mueller. Benedictine is one of approximately 85 colleges and universities that have been accepted into North Central's AQIP program.
Faculty reports
Due in May from all SCI faculty are two assessment-related items: (1) the completed spring semester faculty Classroom Assessment Technique (CAT) questionnaire; and (2) the Academic Affairs Office's faculty development report, which includes a question on assessment. While these reports ask you for some of the same information, they are used for different purposes; both are increasingly important to us as we set up a system for measuring reporting student learning outcomes and using the learning data in our decision-making processes. Full-time faculty already have the faculty report, and both full-time and adjunct instructors will be receiving a blank CAT questionnaire in the next few days. Both forms should be turned into Dean Mueller by the end of the semester.
Clarification
One thing journalists learn quickly is you never let words like "first" or "only" get into print because whenever you do, readers will let you know of an earlier instance before the ink dries. In a recent newsletter, I forgot that principle - I referred to our April 2 Gen Ed assessment day as SCI's first. Sure enough, Judi Anderson reminded me we had a Gen Ed testing day in the 1990s. It was discontinued several years ago, but standardized Gen Ed testing was resumed this year as an integral part of our revised assessment plan and we credit Judi's program with giving us a valuable history and experiential basis to build on.
-- Pete Ellertsen, editor, Nuts & Bolts,
April 28, 2003
Nuts & Bolts is an electronic newsletter published by the Assessment Committee of Springfield College in Illinois.
Members of the Assessment Committee are: Bob Blankenberger; Susan Full; Alice Gutierrez; Kathleen Killion; Penny Leonhard; Scott McCullar; Steve Stowers; Jeff Mueller and Kevin Broeckling (ex officio); and Pete Ellertsen, chair. If you have information, comments or feedback, please contact any committee member or editor Pete Ellertsen, in Becker L-16A on the SCI campus, 525-1420 ext. 519 or by e-mail at ellertsen@sci.edu.