National Trends in Assessing Student Learning

Abstract

The assessment provisions of ABET Engineering Criteria 2000 are part of a larger trend toward emphasizing student learning outcomes in higher education, undertaken both to demonstrate accountability and to improve instruction. This article examines specific national trends that are shaping the development of assessment programs in all disciplines, and briefly reviews major changes in assessment methods which have also occurred in the past two decades. Building on these discussions, the article concludes with a number of experience‐based “points of attack” helpful to those charged with implementing assessment programs at the school or college level.

Curriculum Mapping in Program Assessment and Evaluation

“…The population consisted of 209 PharmD An examination and inventory was taken to determine where data were already being collected to make use of existing points of contact with students. 2 As part of the reflective portfolio process, students completed a report for each domain along with an associated item on the extent of domain coverage during that academic year using a Microsoft Word document form. Student data were entered and de-identified by an independent student worker in the summer and early fall semester of 2005 to form the anonymous database.…”

“…1 In addition to taking an inventory and mapping out where data are already being collected to make use of existing points of contact with students, an important assessment consideration is an examination of the ''designed curriculum,'' the ''delivered curriculum,'' and the ''experienced curriculum.'' 2,3 The designed or intended curriculum is the institutional and program requirements, the delivered or enacted curriculum is the instructional delivery, and the experienced or learned curriculum is what the students actually experience. [3][4] Potential data sources for performance indicators to examine the curriculum include catalog or syllabus review, self-reports from faculty members and students, and assessment and student work examples, such as portfolios.…”

Curricula Then and Now—An Environmental Scan and Recommendations Since the Commission to Implement Change in Pharmaceutical Education: Report of the 2006-2007 Academic Affairs Committee

“…19 While several factors contributed to the genesis of the assessment movement, the demands by stakeholders for information on return on investment as well as the value-added by higher education were a major stimuli. [51][52] There has been a recent increase in the focus on the accountability component of assessment and accreditation in higher education as evidenced by the publications disseminated by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC). [53][54][55] Changes in the way instruction is designed and delivered and the move from primarily ''teaching-based'' to ''learning-based'' models of student development have been driven by the need for students to demonstrate life-long learning skills and enhance professionalism.…”

“…Educational reforms, such as student-centered learning, have added new challenges to conducting outcomes assessment and have moved assessment from being an ''add-on'' to a more naturalized approach embedded within instructional delivery. [51][52] The assessment movement has also helped to create what Ewell termed a ''semi-profession'' within higher education of individuals involved in assessment who are now becoming more formally recognized for their work. 52 Within the academy there appears to be a shortage of individuals with sufficient pharmacy or health sciences orientation to lead this movement thereby hindering meaningful implementation.…”

Evaluation of Curricula Content Based on Thai Pharmacy Competency Standards

“…In order for pharmacy schools to ensure their graduates possess the required skills to practice and to respond to new competency standards, it is important for schools to have ongoing educational curricula evaluations 10 to examine their educational processes and outcomes, focus attention on meeting more global societal needs for services by pharmacists, and provide feedback for their instructional processes. 11 In addition, the results of curricula evaluations will hopefully guide schools to more appropriately modify their curricula. Curricula evaluations may occur with an individual course assessment, within broader school or institutional changes, and within more global changes at a national level.…”