Assessment

  

 

The mission of Springfield College in Illinois is to provide students the best liberal arts education in the Ursuline tradition of a nurturing faith-based environment. We prepare students for a life of learning, leadership and service in a diverse world.

 

Common General Education Objectives

Springfield College in Illinois offers a two-year General Education curriculum that follows guidelines of the Illinois Articulation Initiative. The Common Student Learning Outcomes listed below comprise SCI's program goals and objectives for all students in the College and can be used to assess General Education learning outcomes. In addition, SCI offers pre-professional and fine arts programs.

Common Student Learning Objectives. These grew out of an assessment workshop Dec. 9, 2004, facilitated by Dr. Eileen Kolich, associate provost for academic affairs at Benedictine University. Link here to read Dr. Kolich's report on the workshop.

Classroom Assessment

Guide for Instructors.  A 45-page guidebook entitled "Classroom Assessment for Continuous Improvement," available in hard copy from the assessment committee chair. Largely compiled from "how-to" stories in Nuts & Bolts, it summarizes some of the basic principles of quality improvement planning and offers tips on how to carry it out in the classroom by means of formative assessment. New in HTML format.

Nuts & Bolts

Nuts & Bolts. SCI's online assessment newsletter Nuts & Bolts is published monthly during the school year, it offers tips on classroom assessment, updates on government policy regarding higher education accountability and classroom teaching tips.

 
NCA Assessment Criteria

At the 103rd Annual Meeting of the NCA/CIHE in March 1998 in Chicago, Cecilia López outlined the following "patterns of evidence that demonstrate useful implementation of assessment plans." They comprise a brief and useful summary of what NCA requires of us:

  1. clearly stated goals for all academic programs;
  2. explicit objectives for student learning derived from those goals that are publicly stated and linked to specific measures;
  3. the use of multiple instruments that include direct measures of student learning;
  4. minutes of Assessment Committee meetings that document how assessment information has been collected and interpreted;
  5. a feedback loop, that is, documentation of how the information derived from interpretation of the data has been disseminated, to what constituents, how often, and to what end.
  6. documentation of changes proposed and made in teaching, curricula, and and/or academic support services as a direct result of information derived from the analysis of the data;
  7. evidence of any improvement in student achievement following the changes; and
  8. evidence that the assessment program itself is being periodically evaluated.

Cecilia L. López (1998), The Commission’s Assessment Initiative: A Progress Report. Higher Learning Commission, North Central Association.

  

  
Additional Links
Assessment Committee Reports
References in Becker Library
Assessment Links on the Internet
 

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