Assessment FAQs

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Assessment FAQs

• Director of Institutional Assessment
• Mark E. Radlowski
• mradlowski_at_mvcc.edu
• Assessment Coordinator
• Norayne Rosero
• nrosero_at_mvcc.edu

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10 Why does MSCHE have two standards on
assessment?

• What is meant by Institutional Assessment?
• What is meant by Student Learning Assessment?

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9 Doesnt this whole issue of learning
outcomes and assessment violate our Academic
Freedom?

• What is meant by Academic Freedom?
• How does it relate to Education Law?

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MVCC Academic Freedom Policy

• From the Faculty / Staff Handbook - page 69
• Academic Freedom
• Board of Trustee policy maintains and encourages
  full academic freedom, within the law, of
  inquiry, teaching and research. In the exercise
  of this freedom, the teaching faculty may,
  without limitation, discuss their subjects in the
  classroom. They may not, however, claim as their
  right the privilege of discussing in the
  classroom controversial matters that have no
  relation to their subjects. In their roles as
  citizens, the teaching faculty has the same
  freedoms as other citizens. However, in their
  extramural utterances, they have an obligation to
  indicate that they are not institutional
  spokespersons.

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NYS Higher Education Law http//www.highered.nysed
.gov/ocue/rules.htm

• 52.2 Standards for the registration of
  undergraduate and graduate curricula.
• (e) Administration.
• (4) Academic policies applicable to each
  course, including learning objectives and methods
  of assessing student achievement, shall be made
  explicit by the instructor at the beginning of
  each term.

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8 What is the Spellings Report?

• How will it affect us in the area of assessment?
• How will it affect MSCHE requirements?

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A TEST OF LEADERSHIP - Charting the Future of
U.S. Higher EducationA Report of the Commission
Appointed by Secretary of Education Margaret
Spellings

• Findings indicate that
• Quality of student learning in higher education
  is inadequate
• Shortcomings in relation to graduation rates,
  learning outcomes and core literacy skills
• Employers repeatedly say graduates are not
  prepared for work, lacking critical thinking,
  writing and problem-solving skills
• A summary statement
• We believe that improved accountability is
  vital to ensuring the success of all the other
  reforms we propose. Colleges and universities
  must become more transparent about cost, price,
  and student success outcomes, and must willingly
  share this information with students and
  families.
• http//www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/hiedfuture/r
  eports/final-report.pdf

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Recent MSCHE newsletter headline

• Proposed USED Regulations May Require Minimum
  Standards for Colleges
• The Middle States Commission on Higher
  Education, at its March 2007 meeting, discussed
  its commitment to address proactively changing
  expectations for accountability and transparency
  in higher education. It suggested pilot projects
  and discussed the need to involve MSCHE member
  institutions. Meanwhile, external initiatives to
  impose new requirements are proceeding quickly.
  New federal regulations of accreditation, as
  proposed by the U.S. Department of Education,
  would materially affect the way in which
  institutions must define, assess, report, and
  publicize their student achievement results, as
  well as the scope of substantive changes that
  must be reviewed by accreditors. They also would
  affect the transfer of credit and other areas.

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7 Why arent other Colleges doing what MVCC is
doing for assessment?

• Why so much emphasis on assessment at MVCC?
• Other colleges arent doing this much with
  assessment isnt this emphasis overkill?

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6 How is MVCC doing with Assessment?

• How are we doing with assessment
• for SUNY General Education?
• for SUNY Academic Program Review?
• for MSCHE?
• Do all the assessments for SUNY help us with
  MSCHE requirements?

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5 Why these templates?

• Where did they come from?
• Who chose the template?
• Why didnt we get to choose?

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Program Outcomes Assessment Report
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4 Why dont we have a synchronized schedule for
when assessments are due?

• Who made up the calendar for when assessments are
  due?
• Why isnt there better coordination between
• the program assessments and SUNY assessments?
  
• the program assessments and accrediting agencies
  assessments?

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3 Can we really effect any change with the
students we have?

• How can we implement meaningful change when what
  we do is not in line with students goals and
  expectations?
• How can we implement meaningful change
• when there are so many variables which affect
  student performance?

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What do we know about our students?

• Student goal data (First-time F2006 students)
• 52.5 of the students who reported a goal say
  that they intend to graduate and transfer.
• 22.7 of the students who reported a goal say
  that they intend to graduate and find a job.
• National Community College Benchmark Project
  Report of 2006 Aggregate Data (F04 Cohort)

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2 Has anyone looked at the down side of
assessment?

• Do they understand how much time it takes to do
  assessment?
• Why do they expect us to do extra work with no
  extra pay?
• Dont they realize that assessment lowers morale?

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MSCHE statements

• MSCHE Standard 7 states that an accredited
  institution is expected to possess or demonstrate
  the following attributes or activities
• documented, organized and sustained assessment
  process to evaluate and improve the total range
  of programs and services
• evidence that assessment results are shared and
  discussed with appropriate constituents
• written institutional (strategic) plan(s) that
  reflect(s) consideration of assessment results.
• In support of Standard 14, the MSCHE document
  Student Learning Assessment Options and
  Resources states that assessment of student
  learning will require release time at the onset
  for planning of the execution, communication of
  the assessment activities and results and
  improvements but that it is directly and
  inseparably linked to teaching and mentoring and
  therefore should be considered part of a faculty
  members load, rather than being treated as an
  add-on or as part of institutional service.
  It also states that It is reasonable to expect
  that the definition and assessment of student
  learning will become less time-consuming as they
  become more familiar.

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SUNY statements

• SUNY is providing funding for aspects of
  Strengthened Campus-based Assessment, but only
  for support of training of rubric use and for 2nd
  and 3rd reliability readings of the artifacts.
• The SUNY letter dealing with SCBA funding states
  that Faculty may not receive payment from these
  funds for activities that are considered part of
  their normal workload. In contrast, it would
  not be appropriate to pay a faculty member for a
  first read of a student artifact that would
  count toward a grade in that faculty members
  course.

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1 Why are we doing this isnt assessment just
going to go away in a few years?
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For further information contact

• Director of Institutional Assessment
• Mark E. Radlowski
• mradlowski_at_mvcc.edu
• Assessment Coordinator
• Norayne Rosero
• nrosero_at_mvcc.edu