WRITING LEARNING OUTCOMES AND MAPPING CURRICULUM UK Office of Assessment

Workshop Agenda  2:30-3:30pm:  The Provost’s Learning Initiative  Commitment vs Compliance  The Assessment Process  Curriculum Mapping Examples  3:30-3:45pm:  Break  3:45-5:00pm:  Breakout Work Sessions Defining and Refining Outcomes Mapping Program Curriculum Identifying and Using Evidence to Improve Learning

Office of Assessment  Primary Charge:  Campus-wide assessment of student learning at the program level (General Education)  Other Charges:  Providing consultation, training, logistical support for all academic and co-curricular units  Staff Dr. Marsha Watson: Director of Assessment Dr. Kenneth Royal: Assistant Director of Measurement & Analysis Dr. Julie Johnson: Assessment Specialist Natasha Mamaril and Letao Sun: Graduate Assistants

The LEARNING Initiative Dual Track Implementation Strategy Completion Dates Not actively engaged in program level assessment Actively engaged in program level assessment Sept 2009 Program level student learning outcomes revised and/or updated Dec 2009Assessment strategy in place Jan-Mar 2010Assessment strategy implemented April 2010 Assessment results available for faculty reflection and action May 2010 First cycle completed and improvement plans submitted At least one cycle completed and improvement plans submitted September 2010First annual LEARNING Improvement awards announced May 2011Two cycles completedAt least two cycles completed August 2011SACS Compliance Audit begins September 2011Second annual LEARNING Improvement awards announced

Provost’s Learning Initiative  Goal: Two full cycles of assessment completed by May 2011  Includes the following activities: Establish or strengthen ongoing program-level assessment to promote student learning and curriculum improvement for all degree programs Formulate a plan to develop learning outcomes assessment coordinators in every college Create Provost’s Learning Improvement Awards Implement a dual track strategy to advance continuous improvement through assessment

Commitment vs Compliance  Assessment is more than a response to demands for accountability, more than a means for curricular improvement. Effective assessment is best understood as a strategy for understanding, confirming, and improving student learning.

Six Fundamental Questions  How are your stated student learning outcomes appropriate to your mission, programs, degrees, and students?  What evidence do you have that students achieve your stated learning outcomes?  In what ways do you analyze and use evidence of student learning?  How do you ensure shared responsibility for student learning and for assessment of student learning?  How do you evaluate and improve the effectiveness of your efforts to assess and improve student learning?  In what ways do you inform the public and other stakeholders about what and how well your students are learning?

 Articulate your expectations in the form of learning outcomes  Measure achievement of expectations  Collect & analyze data  Use evidence to improve learning  Assess effectiveness of improvement The Assessment Process

Formulate Statements of Intended Learning Outcomes Develop or Select Assessment Measures Create Experiences Leading To Outcomes Discuss and Use Assessment Results to Improve Learning Formative-Based Revisions Formative-Based Revisions

Review of Assessment Basics  Three levels of assessment  Course  Program Undergraduate majors/programs General education program Graduate majors/programs  Institutional  Course, Program, and Institutional outcomes are aligned but not identical

Review of Assessment Basics  Course Level:  Focused on ongoing pedagogical improvement  Self-generated tools, Classroom Assessment Techniques  Embedded assessment  Program-Level:  Focused on curricular improvement; planning and budgeting  Self-generated, standardized tools  Curriculum & Course Mapping

Design Backward Deliver Forward Intended Learning Outcomes of the Institution Intended Learning Outcomes of the Academic Program Intended Learning Outcomes of the Course Intended Learning Outcomes of the Unit Intended Learning Outcomes of the lesson Huba, M.E. and Freed, J.E. (2000). Learner-Centered Assessment on College Campuses: Shifting the Focus from Teaching to Learning (p. 108). Allyn & Bacon, Needham Heights, MA.

Designing Assessment & Improvement Strategies  Why begin by mapping program curriculum?  To improve learning across programs and over time, two lenses are needed, both of which are made clear by curriculum/course mapping: A zoom lens into curriculum for a specific degree program A wide-angle lens to see the total undergraduate / graduate learning experience in a disciplines or set of disciplines

Outcomes & Curriculum Mapping  Never “completed”  Both statements of learning outcomes and curriculum maps are living documents  Help to provide authentic evidence of the learning taking place or being planned within an institution, college, degree program  Not for use in evaluation of teaching effectiveness  Encouraging individual and collaborative renewing and re- visiting of outcomes, curriculum maps, assessment strategies through collaborative dialogue is essential to being a thriving educational environment that continually improves student learning.

1. UK Department of Forestry 2. Colorado Mountain College Curriculum Mapping Examples

Breakout Work Sessions  Session 1:  Refining and Defining Learning Outcomes  Session 2:  Mapping Program Curriculum  Session 3:  Identifying and Using Evidence to Improve Learning