How To Get Started

Assessment is the process of identifying how well students are meeting the student learning outcomes, reflecting on our instructional strategies, and planning methods to improve both student learning and our teaching methods.

If you are new to teaching or this process, please take a look at the information below, as well as our Resources page.

Step 1: Use the Cycle of Assessment

Good assessment follows an intentional and reflective process of design, implementation, evaluation, and revision. The cycle of assessment relies on four simple but dynamic steps representing this process:

• Plan & Improve
• Teach
• Measure
• Reflect

These four steps are repeated over and over as part of a cycle of continual improvement until we have achieved our goals.

First, you should start with student-centered course learning outcomes. These outcomes should:

1. contain a performance statement
2. be measurable
3. be specific
4. be concerned with learning (and not teaching)
5. be related to the end, rather than the means.

How to write strong, student-centered Course Learning Outcomes

Each quarter you should document your history of assessment, analysis, reflection, and action.

In addition, at the end of every academic year all Department Coordinators need to document department’s assessment goals, discussions, and any assessment-related support needs.

Step 2: Document the Assessment

Documenting our assessment activities and sharing them with others on campus helps us all improve our teaching methods. This documentation process is done through the Assessment Tool

How to Submit an Individual, Course-level Assessment

How to Submit a Program-level or Core Competency-level Assessment

Sample Rubrics for Assessing at the Program- or Core Competency-level.

When to Assess?

The Assessment Committee suggests the following timeline for assessing each quarter: