Month: May 2016

Endings and Beginnings

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We often think of December as the time when a year “wraps up” and things come to a close as we prepare to start a new year, but in the realm of academics, the month of May rivals or exceeds December as a time of closure.  We are wrapping up the academic year, colleagues and friends are retiring, we are posting final grades, and looking forward to a little rest and relaxation during summer.  So, in other words, this is a perfect time to think about assessment! Even as the academic year ends, another semester is already on the horizon, which means another academic year is fast approaching.  Summertime is a great time to take stock of where you are with your assessment initiatives.  Do you need to spend some time analyzing data?  Reevaluating your assessment question?  Tweaking or changing your assessment instrument?  Working with colleagues to develop new assessment strategies? The Office of Outcomes Assessment is the bridge to Continue reading Endings and Beginnings→

Conference Debrief

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Another year, another great conference!  It was wonderful to get to visit with so many colleagues at the Regional Assessment Conference on April 22.  I heard a range of presentations on campus assessment initiatives and strategies, enjoyed a dynamic keynote address (Dr. Jillian Kinzie rocks!), and ultimately came away invigorated— with a host of ideas for moving forward on my own campus. As we’ve taken time to catch up this past week, I’ve been working on my “to-do” list.  After digging my conference room and office out from under all of RCCAC 2016 materials, I pulled together some takeaways from this year’s conference: Assessment works! Kinzie shared some excellent stories and examples of colleagues and institutions that are closing the loop on assessment and making strides in student learning. (Be sure to revisit her presentation under the “RCCAC Keynote 2016” tab above.) There are multiple assessment roads. My colleagues and I shared lots of assessment strategies that have worked well Continue reading Conference Debrief→