Academic Assessment

ASSESSMENT OF STUDENT LEARNING
AT NORTHEASTERN JUNIOR COLLEGE

AN INSTITUTION-WIDE PROCESS
OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF
STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

 
Formal definition of Assessment:
Assessment of student learning is the systematic collection, review, and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning.  Thus, assessment reflects an understanding of learning as multidimensional, integrated, and revealed over time.

In other words...
How do we know that we know that they (students) know what they are supposed to be learning?

Importance of Assessment of Student Learning:
NJC was last granted accreditation by North Central Association -- Higher Learning Commission in 1998 with a focused visit scheduled for 2001-02 examining assessment of student learning.

As a result of that focus visit, a monitoring report was prepared December 2004 to ensure progress toward implementing the assessment plan for student academic achievement.  The monitoring report was approved by HLC in early 2006.  NJC is currently preparing for our re-accreditation visit in 2008-09, beginning with the self-study process to determine if we are meeting the needs of our students and constituents.

Ultimately, accreditation stands as Northeastern Junior College’s most visible symbol of achieving and maintaining our goal of excellence in education!

The Underlying Principles
Assessment is a central element in the overall quality of teaching and learning in higher education.  It provides the administration and faculty of educational institutions opportunities to monitor the attainment of learning outcomes and to receive feedback for ongoing improvement of academic programs.  The overall goal of assessment is to improve student learning.

The following underlying principles of assessment of student learning are widely accepted:

1. Faculty should have primary responsibility for the development, implementation, and maintenance of assessment activities.
2. Programs need to have visible, clearly stated purposes.  Defined learning outcomes are essential.
3. Statements of intended student learning outcomes should originate with the faculty in those areas.
4. The work of students gathered for assessment purposes should remain confidential and be used only for the purposes of assessment (unless explicit permission is granted by the student).
5. Assessment of student learning is about improving learning, not about evaluating faculty.
6. Assessment is systematic, ongoing, and cyclical.
7. Assessment should be logical, attainable, and consistent with the institution’s mission.

Assessment of Student Learning
The goal of assessment of student learning at Northeastern Junior College is to improve student learning and thus help the college fulfill its educational mission.  Assessment provides evidence of how well NJC is meeting its objectives and helps identify areas for improvement.

Assessment of student learning at NJC is coordinated by the Assessment Steering Committee.  To facilitate assessment in programs and disciplines, the Assessment Committee has been working toward devising a process whereby each program designs and implements an assessment plan each year, analyzes and discusses the data collected, and uses the results to devise action plans aimed at improving student learning.
    
Assessment of Student Learning provides evidence at multiple levels: institutional, program, and course.  NJC is working to establish a comprehensive ongoing assessment program that assesses student learning at each level from pre-admission through graduation.  The goal is to demonstrate the level of student learning taking place so that improvements can be made to both teaching and learning.  Most faculty members have experienced involvement in the college’s assessment program.  Among their many contributions, NJC faculty members have:

• Served on assessment sub-committees;
• Presented and attended assessment conferences and workshops;
• Participated in the determination and definitions of the four main assessment competencies;
• Included assessment of student learning sections in course syllabi;
• Integrated the teaching of the four competencies into their courses; and
• Incorporated assessment elements into their annual work plans and goals.

Assessment at the Institutional Level

Institutional assessment efforts include the identification of skills considered as the foundation of education.  After seeking input from NJC faculty members and community employers, the Assessment Steering Committee determined that through their course of study at Northeastern Junior College, students develop competence in four main skills.  Students who graduate from NJC will demonstrate proficiency in the following core competencies: 

Communication
Graduates will demonstrate the ability to read, write, and speak effectively.

Upon completion of their course of studies, students will be able to effectively express and exchange thoughts, opinions and information both orally and in writing.  The successful student will be able to:
• Construct effective written and oral communications using content, organization and delivery techniques that convey accurate, concise and complete information appropriate to topic, audience, occasion and purpose.
• Create written communications using grammar, sentence structure, mechanics, spelling skills and content appropriate to defined standards or criteria.
• Adapt listening behaviors to provide accommodation to the listening situation and offer appropriate and effective feedback.

Critical Thinking
Graduates will demonstrate the ability to interpret, evaluate, and analyze and synthesize information.

Upon completion of their course of studies, students will be able to examine and utilize reasoning strategies in order to select, apply and evaluate evidence in multiple disciplines.  Students will be able to reason and draw logical conclusions from numerical information.  The successful student will be able to:

• Illustrate basic mathematical functions, i.e. addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division; estimate and judge the reasonableness of numerical results, and think proportionally, and analyze statistically.
•  Interpret and apply data in various forms, e.g. charts, graphs.
• Formulate solutions to problems by separating information into component parts, determining the relevancy of data, evaluating facts and inferences and recognizing logical fallacies in reasoning.
• Evaluate alternative viewpoints, arguments and belief systems.
• Gather and assess relevant information after generating vital questions and problems.

Technology
Graduates will demonstrate the ability to use technology to achieve educational objectives.

Upon completion of their course of studies, students will be able to make use of various technology-based applications.  The successful student will be able to:

• Investigate and use technology to access information and to assess its reliability.
• Construct completed work that demonstrates competency in the operation of applicable equipment and software in various programs of study.
• Utilize technology to complete various tasks applicable to lifelong skills of communication and critical thinking, thriving in a global community.

Ethics / Diversity / Globalization
Graduates will demonstrate the ability to analyze and accept responsibility for personal behaviors and interactions; graduates will possess the ability to reflect on individual and societal ethical standards and values. Graduates will demonstrate the ability to honor diversity.
Graduates will recognize the value of their individual roles in the increasing globalization of their world. 

Upon completion of their course of studies, students will be able to identify characteristics of ethical behavior and define qualities that signify the integrity of a project, person, or society. Students will be able to recognize and respect the importance of diversity and working cooperatively on situations and issues that affect all communities and individuals in a changing world. The successful student will be able to:

• Analyze and accept responsibility for personal behaviors and interactions that reflect individual and/or societal ethical standards and values.
• Analyze the divergent views of others and interpret behaviors without making stereotypical or prejudicial judgments.
• Determine appropriate ways to work respectfully in both leadership and team roles with people of various capabilities and orientations.
• Appreciate the integrity and uniqueness of interactions among diverse social and cultural groups.

Assessment measures how well students are learning and developing these important skills.  Assessment allows us to strive for continuous improvement of education and to communicate with students, employers, and other stakeholders about how well learning is taking place at NJC.

Sub-committees for each competency are in place to assess, document and report how well students are learning and developing these important skills.  Through the use of surveys, writing samples, software programs and other assessment tools, a sampling of first-semester freshmen and second-semester sophomores are assessed to evaluate progress achieved of these skills during their course of study at NJC.  This assessment allows us to strive for continuous improvement of education and to communicate with students, employers, and other stakeholders about how well learning is taking place at NJC. 

Assessment at the Program Level

Faculty and staff at Northeastern Junior College identify goals, resources needed, obstacles and benchmarks as part of the program assessment process.  At the Fall 2007 Faculty In-service, individual departments/programs met to discuss goals and expectations for their specific program, answering a variety of questions (see Program Assessment section).  For example,  Math and Science faculty members have identified key objectives of various classes to measure student learning, such as “assessing whether students had mastered basic derivative skills involving exponential and natural logarithm functions” by asking a specific test question and recording the results in a Survey of Calculus course.  This process of continuous improvement is ongoing as instructors document progress each semester while determining the best method of teaching certain course objectives.  Faculty members of various NJC programs also set goals for students graduating from their respective programs as they relate to the four core competencies of communication, critical thinking, technology, and diversity/ethics/globalization.

Examples of documented program assessment are included here.


Assessment at the Course Level

Course assessment occurs as faculty select exercises and activities to establish if students are learning what was intended.  Most faculty members include information in course syllabi as it applies to assessment of student learning.  The instructor may conduct a quiz or ask students to write a journal entry answering a specific question regarding material covered during a class period.  The instructor then evaluates the results to decide if changes are to be made in future class meetings.  Many instructors have identified key objectives within the course they wish to assess.  Through the process of setting goals and assessing the particular objective through a specific assignment or exam question, instructors are able to determine whether students have indeed learned the objective.  Through this information, faculty members make adjustments to teaching methods as necessary.   Rubrics are often used as assessment tools for specific writing or oral presentation assignments within a course. 

Course assessment template and rubrics are available to all NJC faculty members and students.

Identified Strengths and Challenges – NJC Assessment

Strengths

Northeastern Junior College has the following strengths in the area of assessment:

• The Steering Committee has defined the four core competencies they believe students should have upon completion of a certificate or degree at NJC.
• The faculty has become increasingly aware of the importance of assessment as a measure of student learning, and the activities and reporting necessary to document improvement.
• Administration recognizes the significance of assessment, evidenced by funds budgeted to support professional development and other assessment activities.


Challenges

The self-study also found challenges for the future.  With regard to assessment, NJC is challenged to:

• Develop and collect program- and institutional-level data on student achievement of the core competencies.
• Strengthen the college’s data collection, analysis, and documentation to support the work of the Assessment program.
• Communicate assessment efforts and outcomes on the college website.
• Use assessment outcomes in making curriculum changes and formulation of programs.