One of my hobbies is quilting. I took it up later in life, meaning somewhere past my 40th birthday, and I have found that I really enjoy it. When quilting, you have to consider the overall design of your creation and how the selection of patterns, colors, and shapes are going to fit together. The most important part is deciding how you will bring all of these elements and the resulting individual pieces of fabric together to create a whole that is beautiful, durable, and, of course, keeps you warm on a cold winter night.
I have determined through my experience that assessment is a lot like quilting. There are many elements that go into a good assessment plan. You certainly need to consider your overall design, starting with what exactly you want to know about your students. If you design your assessment plan well, then all of the pieces will indeed fit together to form a cohesive whole focused on improving teaching and learning.
This summer we will offer two opportunities for faculty outside of JCCC who are interested in developing tenable assessment plans for programs and courses to attend a highly interactive assessment workshop on our campus. I firmly believe that the theoretical and practical framework of the workshop will guide participants to see the individual pieces of assessment as they create an assessment plan that reflects the big picture.
If you are interested in finding out more – check out the Assessment by Design Workshop tab above.