Assessment by Design

Growing up in Florida, theme parties were all the rage.  I attended lots of water themed parties – often dressed as a sea creature or mermaid.  In high school we would have themed days for service to the community or activities like Grandparents day, Band Parent Day, and Super Hero Day (you can guess who I dressed up as). I don’t see much emphasis on themes now, but I would like to bring back this proud tradition from my youth and propose one for the January Assessment World Café – Reporting Our Assessment!  Now there is a theme I can really support.  You’ve heard me say repeatedly that assessment reports provide a roadmap for curriculum decision and changes made in your courses/classroom, while providing my office with data to tell the story of student learning at the College. So as you are working on your assessment plans this Fall and Spring semester; plan now to attend the World Café and Continue reading Reporting Your Assessment→

Assessment: the action or an instance of making a judgment about something. (Merriam-Webster) I teach a course for adjuncts at the college once each semester.  It is a three hour session that is part of an overall certification program for adjunct faculty.  I taught the class this week and found that most of my class had never taught before.  That was a bit surprising!  Usually I have a mix of faculty with experience at multiple schools or even years of experience at JCCC, but in this class I was introducing new faculty to the concept of assessment when they were still trying to figure out the basics of teaching! Because of the new faculty in the class, we went a little more in depth with some of the basics of evaluation, testing, and how to use assessment to improve teaching.  Actually, I used the word pedagogy to talk about teaching styles but that term was new to some of them Continue reading Assessment as Action→

I must confess – I am a book-a-holic.  Of course in the field of higher education, I am surrounded by others with the same problem.  Were it not for the invention of the e-reader, I am confident my home would now be completely overrun with my book collection and I would be fine with that! I am a firm believer the answer to many of life’s issues are housed in books, so this year we are trying a new experiment: a joint effort of the Assessment Office and the Faculty/Staff Development Office, we are hosting a faculty assessment book club. The book we are using for this inaugural offering is Assessing Academic Programs in Higher Education, by Mary J. Allen.  Always a staple in our office, this book is a slim offering (8 chapters) packed with lots of great information on the basics of assessment.  Everything from defining learning objectives, direct assessment techniques, to making sense of assessment data.  This Continue reading Assessment by the Book (Club)→

Although the summer season is not officially over until September, it might as well be for anyone working in education. Children everywhere will be getting on buses or parents will brave the drop off lanes in the coming days and weeks, while also preparing to return to syllabi, lesson plans, and more. The Kansas summer was hot, windy, wet, and busy. While we, the office formerly known as Outcomes Assessment, have gone through an official name change; it will not hinder our drive to provide exceptional service to the faculty of JCCC. We have a plethora of sessions being offered during Professional Development Days starting August 14, 2017: Assessment by Design Administrative and Service Area Review Process Assessment By the Book (Club) Program Review Reports Updates Ask a Peer Reviewer – Preparing for the HLC Site Visit From Good Grades to Good Learning World Café Look for times, locations, and session descriptions in your PDD calendar. If you are just Continue reading Welcome Back, Welcome Back→

Ah June. The first month of the summer season: outdoor concerts, swimming pools, the smell of sunscreen and bug spray, frozen treats, epic road trips, and summer camps. As adults, we have replaced summer camps with summer workshops. It’s a fabulous way to get together with colleagues from other institutions to network and get ideas for the upcoming fall term. Assessment by Design, a one day workshop, offers our colleagues an opportunity to learn about the Cycle of Assessment with the goal of developing an assessment plan for the upcoming academic year. Build your assessment toolbox with formative, summative, direct, and indirect assessments. Learn how to design a rubric and more. There are still a few openings for Friday, June 16th. The cost is $135 for the day and includes lunch, refreshments, a workbook, and lots of hands-on activities. Say “Hello” to June with us.