Assessment Guidebook

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UT Martin

Assessment Guidebook

Name of Program (major, minor, or concentration)

Last updated: date

Table of Contents

Mission Statement

Student Learning Outcomes

Curriculum Map

Evaluation of Capstone or Senior Project

Evaluation for Internships or Field Experiences

Alignment to the DQP

High Impact Practices

Appendices

Glossary of Terms

Rubrics

Forms

Reporting Templates

University of Tennessee at MartinMission Statement

The primary purpose of The University of Tennessee at Martin is to provide a quality undergraduate education in a traditional collegiate atmosphere characterized at all levels by close collaboration among students, faculty and staff. In addition, the university is dedicated to meeting lifelong educational needs by providing graduateprograms, distance-learning opportunities and other creative endeavors. Furthermore, the university iscommitted to advancing the regional and global community through scholarly activities, research and public service.

Program Mission

Please insert your departmental, program, or concentration mission statement here.

Student Learning Outcomes

These are the Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) for Name of Program. These are the things that graduates of this program are expected to know and be able to do upon completion of a (Major, Minor, certification) in _____. These are the things this program will assess. These SLOs should be prominently displayed on your website.

Outcome 1:

Outcome 2:

Outcome 3:

Outcome 4:

Brief descriptions of outcomes, rationale for the outcome, assessment tools, and benchmarks.

UTM Outcome / Description and rationale with links to University Mission / Assessment tools / Benchmarks
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2
3
4

Curriculum Map

The following map depicts the required courses for (Name of Program) and the SLOs associated with those courses. “I” indicates the course where an outcome is first introduced. “D” indicates the courses where the outcome is further developed. “A” indicates the course in which the outcome is assessed.

Outcomes
Required courses / Course / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

Description of Assessment for Capstoneor Senior Project

Purpose of the Capstone or Senior Project

Assessment Tools

Person(s) responsible for assessment reporting

Benchmarks

Description of Assessment for Internship or Field Experience

Purpose of the Internship or Field Experience

Assessment Tools

Person(s) responsible for assessment reporting

Benchmarks

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Alignment to the DQP

Broad, Integrative Knowledge: This area “should involve students in the practices of core fields ranging from science to social sciences through the humanities and arts, and in developing global, cultural, and democratic perspectives” (Lumina Foundation, 2011, p. 11).

AssociateStudent Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
A1: Describes how existing knowledge or practice is advanced, tested, and revised
A2: Describes and examines a range of perspectives on key debates and their significance both within the field and in society
A3: Illustrates core concepts of the field while executing analytical, practical or creative tasks
A4: Selects and applies recognized methods of the field in interpreting characteristic discipline-based problems
A5: Assembles evidence relevant to characteristic problems in the field, describes the significance of the evidence, and uses the evidence in analysis of these problems
A6: Describes the ways in which at least two disciplines define, address and interpret the importance of a contemporary challenge or problem in science, the arts, society, human services, economic life or technology
Baccalaureate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
B1: Frames a complex scientific, social, technological, economic or aesthetic challenge or problem from the perspectives and literature of at least two academic fields, and proposes a “best approach” to question or challenge using evidence from those fields
B2: Produces, independently or collaboratively, an investigative, creative, or practical work that draws on specific theories, tools, and methods from at least two academic fields
B3: Explains a contemporary or recurring challenge or problem in science, the arts, society, human services, economic life or technology from the perspective of at least two academic fields, explains how the methods of inquiry and/or research in those disciplines can be brought to bear in addressing the challenge, judges the likelihood that the combination of disciplinary perspectives and methods would contribute to the resolution of the challenge, and justifies the importance of the challenge in a social or global context

Specialized Knowledge: Eachdiscipline or major field of study defines specific requirements and/or field-specific outcomes. But across all of these fields there are common learning outcomes involving terminology, theory, tools, methodologies, literature, complex problems or applications, and some understanding of the limits of the field.

AssociateStudent Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
A1: Describes the scope and principal features of his/her field of study, citing at least some of its core theories and practice, and offers a similar explication of at least one related field
A2: Illustrates contemporary terminology used in the field
A3: Generates substantially error-free products, reconstructions, data, etc. or juried exhibits or performances as appropriate to the field
Baccalaureate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
B1: Defines and explains the boundaries and major sub-fields, styles, and/or practices of the field
B2: Defines and properly uses the principal specialized terms used in the field, both historical & contemporaneous
B3: Demonstrates fluency in the use of tools, technologies, and methods common in the field
B4: Evaluates, clarifies, and frames a complex question or challenge, using perspectives and scholarship drawn from the student’s major field and at least one other field
B5: Constructs a project related to a familiar but complex problem in his/her field of study by independently assembling, arranging & reformulating ideas, concepts, designs and/or techniques
B6: Constructs a summative project, paper, performance or practice-based performance that draws on current research, scholarship and/or techniques in the field

Applied Learning: Beyond what a graduate may know, the ultimate benchmark of learning is what that graduate can do with what he/she knows. This section “underscores the interaction of academic and non-academic settings and the corresponding integration of theory and practice. Research of different kinds and intensities and ‘field-based’ experiences (internships, practicums, community and other service learning) … are examples of applied learning” (Lumina Foundation, 2011, p. 14).

AssociateStudent Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
A1: Describes in writing at least one substantial case in which knowledge and skills acquired in academic settings are applied to a challenge in a non-academic setting; evaluates, using evidence and examples, the learning gained from the application; applies that learning to the question; and analyzes at least one significant concept or method related to his/her course of study in light of learning outside the classroom
A2:Locates, gathers, and organizes evidence on an assigned topic addressing a course-related question or a question of practice in a work or community setting; offers and examines competing hypotheses in answering the question
Baccalaureate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
B1: Presents a discrete project, paper, exhibit, or performance, or other appropriate demonstration that links knowledge and/or skills acquired in work, community, and/or research activities with knowledge acquired in one or more disciplines; explains in writing or another medium how those elements were combined in the product to shape its intended meaning or findings; and employs appropriate citations to demonstrate the relationship of the product to the literature in its field
B2: Formulates a question or a topic that addresses more than one academic discipline or practical setting, locates appropriate evidence that addresses the question, evaluates the evidence in relation to the problem’s contexts, and articulates conclusions that follow logically from such analysis
B3: Completes a substantial field-based project related to his/her major course of study; seeks and employs insights from others in implementing the project; evaluates a significant challenge or question faced in the project in relation to core concepts, methods or assumptions in his/her major field; and describes the effects of learning outside the classroom on his/her research or practical skills

Intellectual Skills: These are cross-cutting skills that should transcend disciplinary boundaries. “Students need all of these Intellectual Skills to acquire and apply both general and specialized knowledge” (Lumina Foundation, 2011, p. 8).

Associate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
Analytic inquiry
A1: Identifies, categorizes, and distinguishes among elements of ideas, concepts, theories, and/or practical approaches to standard problems
Use of informational resources
A2: Identifies, categorizes, evaluates and cites multiple information resources necessary to engage in project, papers, or performances in his/her program
Engaging diverse perspectives
A3: Describes how knowledge from different cultural perspectives would affect his/her interpretations of prominent problems in politics, society, the arts, and/or global relations
Quantitative fluency
A4: Presents accurate calculations and symbolic operations, and explains how such calculations and operations are used in either his/her specific field of study or in interpreting social and economic trends
Communication fluency
A5: Presents substantially error-free prose in both argumentative and narrative forms to general and specialized audiences
Baccalaureate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
Analytic inquiry
B1: Differentiates and evaluates theories and approaches to complex standard and non-standard problems within his/her major field and at least one other academic field
Use of informational resources
B2: Incorporates multiple information resources presented in different media and/or different languages, in projects, papers, or performances with citations in form appropriate to those resources, and evaluates the reliability and comparative worth of competing information resources
B3: Explicates the ideal characteristics of current information resources for the execution of project, papers, or performances; accesses those resources with appropriate delimiting terms and syntax; describes the strategies by which he/she identified and searched for those resources
Engaging diverse perspectives
B4: Constructs a cultural, political, or technological alternative vision of either the natural or human world, embodied in a written project, laboratory report, exhibit, performance, or community service design; defines the distinct patterns in this alternative vision; and explains how they differ from current realities
Quantitative fluency
B5: Translates verbal problems into mathematical algorithms and construct valid mathematical arguments using the accepted symbolic system of mathematical reasoning
Communication fluency
B6: Constructs sustained, coherent arguments and/or narratives and/or explications of technical issues and process, in two media, to general and specific audiences
B7: In a language other than English, and either orally or in writing, conducts an inquiry with a non-English-language source concerning information, conditions, technologies, and/or practices in his/her major field
B8: With one or more oral interlocutors or collaborators, advances an argument or designs an approach to resolving a social, personal, or ethical dilemma

Civic Learning: These objectives rely considerably on out-of-classroom experiences, combining both knowledge and a commitment to action, as well as the development of a capacity for analytic inquiry, reflection, and engagement with diverse perspectives.

AssociateStudent Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
A1: Describes his/her own civic and cultural background, including its origins and development, assumptions and predispositions
A2: Describes diverse positions, historical and contemporary, on selected democratic values or practices, and presents his/her own position on a specific problem where on or more of these values or practices are involved
A3: Takes an active role in a community context (work, service, co-curricular activities, etc.) and examines the civic issues encountered and the insights gained from the community experience
Baccalaureate Student Learning Objective / Similar Program SLO / Program Courses that address this SLO / Assessment
B1: Explains diverse positions, including those of different cultural, economic & geographic interests, on a contested issue, and evaluates the issue in light of both those interests and evidence drawn from journalism and scholarship
B2: Develops and justifies a position on a public issue and relates the position taken to alternative views within the community/policy environment
B3: Collaborates with others in developing and implementing an approach to a civic issue, evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the process and, where applicable, the result

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High Impact Practices

See the explanation of terms in the Appendices for descriptions of these HIPs. Please note that you are not necessarily expected to utilize every HIP in the list below.

HIP / Description of how this HIP fits into this program
First year Seminars
Common Intellectual Experiences
Learning Communities
Writing Intensive Courses
Active and Collaborative Learning
Undergraduate Research Experiences
Diversity/Global Learning (including Study Abroad)
Service or Community-based Learning
Internship or Field Experience
Capstone Courses and Projects
E-Portfolios

Appendices

Explanations of Terms

High-Impact Educational Practices

A Brief Overview

Excerpt from High-Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter, by George D. Kuh (AAC&U, 2008)

High-Impact Educational Practices: A Brief Overview

The following teaching and learning practices have been widely tested and have been shown to be beneficial for college students from many backgrounds. These practices take many different forms, depending on learner characteristics and on institutional priorities and contexts.

On many campuses, assessment of student involvement in active learning practices such as these has made it possible to assess the practices’ contribution to students’ cumulative learning. However, on almost all campuses, utilization of active learning practices is unsystematic, to the detriment of student learning. Presented below are brief descriptions of high-impact practices that educational research suggests increase rates of student retention and student engagement. The rest of this publication will explore in more detail why these types of practices are effective, which students have access to them, and, finally, what effect they might have on different cohorts of students.

First-Year Seminars and Experiences
Many schools now build into the curriculum first-year seminars or other programs that bring small groups of students together with faculty or staff on a regular basis. The highest-quality first-year experiences place a strong emphasis on critical inquiry, frequent writing, information literacy, collaborative learning, and other skills that develop students’ intellectual and practical competencies. First-year seminars can also involve students with cutting-edge questions in scholarship and with faculty members’ own research.

Common Intellectual Experiences
The older idea of a “core” curriculum has evolved into a variety of modern forms, such as a set of required common courses or a vertically organized general education program that includes advanced integrative studies and/or required participation in a learning community. These programs often combine broad themes—e.g., technology and society, global interdependence—with a variety of curricular and co-curricular options for students.

Learning Communities
The key goals for learning communities are to encourage integration of learning across courses and to involve students with “big questions” that matter beyond the classroom. Students take two or more linked courses as a group and work closely with one another and with their professors. Many learning communities explore a common topic and/or common readings through the lenses of different disciplines. Some deliberately link “liberal arts” and “professional courses”; others feature service learning.

Writing-Intensive Courses
These courses emphasize writing at all levels of instruction and across the curriculum, including final-year projects. Students are encouraged to produce and revise various forms of writing for different audiences in different disciplines. The effectiveness of this repeated practice “across the curriculum” has led to parallel efforts in such areas as quantitative reasoning, oral communication, information literacy, and, on some campuses, ethical inquiry.

Collaborative Assignments and Projects
Collaborative learning combines two key goals: learning to work and solve problems in the company of others, and sharpening one’s own understanding by listening seriously to the insights of others, especially those with different backgrounds and life experiences. Approaches range from study groups within a course, to team-based assignments and writing, to cooperative projects and research. These may include projects that take a semester or longer to complete.

Undergraduate Research
Many colleges and universities are now providing research experiences for students in all disciplines. Undergraduate research, however, has been most prominently used in science disciplines. With strong support from the National Science Foundation and the research community, scientists are reshaping their courses to connect key concepts and questions with students’ early and active involvement in systematic investigation and research. The goal is to involve students with actively contested questions, empirical observation, cutting-edge technologies, and the sense of excitement that comes from working to answer important questions.

Diversity/Global Learning
Many colleges and universities now emphasize courses and programs that help students explore cultures, life experiences, and worldviews different from their own. These studies—which may address U.S. diversity, world cultures, or both—often explore “difficult differences” such as racial, ethnic, and gender inequality, or continuing struggles around the globe for human rights, freedom, and power. Frequently, intercultural studies are augmented by experiential learning in the community and/or by study abroad.

Service Learning, Community-Based Learning
In these programs, field-based “experiential learning” with community partners is an instructional strategy—and often a required part of the course. The idea is to give students direct experience with issues they are studying in the curriculum and with ongoing efforts to analyze and solve problems in the community. A key element in these programs is the opportunity students have to both apply what they are learning in real-world settings and reflect in a classroom setting on their service experiences. These programs model the idea that giving something back to the community is an important college outcome, and that working with community partners is good preparation for citizenship, work, and life.