“Assessment is not an end in itself; it’s merely a tool for getting us, our programs and our students where we want to go. So it’s essential to know what we are going to use it for. We have to think about our mission, about the educational values our program represents, what our aspirations are, and what kinds of learning goals for students flow from that vision. These considerations in turn influence both what we assess and how.” The comprehensive goal of your departmental/course assessment process to evaluate your students through a variety of measurement tools, including quizzes, tests, papers and classroom discussion, on their knowledge of facts and understanding of issues relevant to your discipline and their ability to evaluate conflicting information using appropriate evidence and reach reasoned conclusions as they move through their courses is completely congruent with the UCCS SAAC Assessment Process. The SAAC Assessment Reporting Process simply requests that you document through the use of traditional measurement instruments that your students are achieving the stated student learning outcomes and that your department is working collaboratively to insure that you are continuously working to identify and address strengths and weakness in your department to allow all students equal opportunity to achieve those student learning outcomes. “This does not imply a criticism of the status quo, but it is a recognition that as students, society, and the workplace change, education must adapt to those changes. Every program, even the most successful, can benefit from a process of continuous inquiry, reflection, and improvement. If improvement is the point, then the most important comparison for each program is what it accomplishes in relation to its own past record. Comparisons to other programs on this campus, or to similar programs on other campuses, are of secondary interest.”
Last Updated : May 6, 2009