Designing Course-Level Performance Measures Aligned with Program-Level Learning Outcomes Steven Beyerlein, Mechanical Engineering University of Idaho Daniel Apple, Pacific Crest Frontiers in Education Workshop Savannah, GA October 20, 2004

Workshop Outcomes Assess a performance measure for the design process from the standpoint of a user Experience a team process for creating a new performance measure Motivate participants to incorporate more performance measurement in their courses.

Schedule (Part I) Participant Introductions=>10 min Case Study: Performance Measure for Design (skim paper with facilitator commentary=>10 min) Assess holistic rubric for design=>10 min Assess analytical rubric for design=>10 min Assess process for creating performance measure as documented in paper=>10 min Select process area to study and form teams for Part II=> 10 min –Conducting Research –Managing a Client Relationship –Reading reference materials/research papers –Testing a product or a process

NEED: Shared Framework for Discussing and Measuring Development of Skills Intro to Engineering and Design Discipline-Specific Courses, Including Some Projects In-Depth Analysis, Design Foundational Team Design Capabilities Freshmen Sophomore Junior Senior High-Level Design and Professional Capabilities

METHOD: Shared Language Performance Performance - Individual/team actions that can be measured, monitored, and improved over time Performance Criteria Performance Criteria - Expected behavior levels associated with a particular group of performers Performance Task Performance Task - Integrated learning challenge that provides opportunities to demonstrate core knowledge, skills, and attitudes Performance Factor Performance Factor - Element of performance which can be directly observed and measured Performance Measure Performance Measure - Instrument that integrates relevant data for the purpose of rating performance

Methodology for Creating a Performance Measure for a Process Area 1) Form a team with diverse training and perspectives (pg. 3) 2) Recruit a facilitator familiar with the process area (pg. 3) 3) Define boundaries of the skill set for the process area (pg. 4) 4) Analyze expert behavior in the process area (pg. 14) 5) Identify key sources of variability in performance (pg. 15) 6) Craft a holistic rubric from “novice” to “expert” (pg. 16) 7) Propose scales for measuring key factors (pg. 9-10) 8) Test by reflecting on a variety of performances (pg. 7-8)

TESTING: Three Contexts Measurement Measurement is the foundation for quality assessment as well as quality evaluation Assessment Assessment is low-stakes, “friendly” feedback Measures knowledge, skill or ability to improve future performance Provides assessee indication of strengths, areas for improvement, and ways to improve Evaluation Evaluation is high-stakes, “judgmental” feedback Judges the merit or worth of something against a set of standards Produces a grade or score that is part of a permanent, public record

Schedule (Part II) Create new performance measure –initial description (2 sentences) => 10 min –list performance factors (up to 7) =>10 min –rank and report top factors =>10 min –achieve consensus on primary factors =>15 min –pair factors for use in holistic rubric => 10 min –label performance levels => 10 min –demonstrate writing behaviors => 10 min –practice writing behaviors =>15 min –Identify sub-items for analytic rubric => 10 min Assess team process used in workshop =>10 min