Annual Program Assessment

What is program assessment and why do we do it?

Program assessment examines student learning of program learning objectives (PLOs) across the curriculum and their department/program experiences.  Program assessment is a cyclical and iterative process where data on student learning informs program-level decision making.  Outcomes of this process may include: revising instructional approaches across the entire curriculum, in specific courses, or in course-level assessments; revising a PLO; providing data for department-level discussions on effective teaching and learning; and/or revising your Curriculum PLO map.  This report allows departments to document their successes and areas for improvement as they relate to student learning and program objectives.

Our accrediting body, WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), requires regular assessment of student achievement of PLOs as part of their criteria for review (CFRs) of member institutions including:

• CFR 2.4 The institution conducts periodic reviews of its degree programs.  The program review process includes analysis of student achievement of the program's learning outcomes.
• CFR 2.7 The faculty are responsible for creating and evaluating student learning outcomes and establishing standards of student performance.
• CFR 2.9 The institution demonstrates that graduates consistently achieve stated learning outcomes and standards of performance.  Faculty elevate student work in terms of stated learning outcomes.
• CFR 3.1 The institution employs faculty, staff, and administrators sufficient in scale, professional qualifications, and background to achieve the institution's educational and student success objectives, to propose and oversee policy, and to ensure the integrity of its academic, student support, and co-curricular programs and services and administrative processes.
• CFR 4.3 The institution examines the extent to which its climate supports student success and acts on its findings.  The institution regularly assesses the characteristics, experiences, and performance of its students and uses this evidence to improve student success.
• CFR 4.6 The institution, with significant faculty involvement, engages in continuous inquiry into the processes of teaching and learning, and the conditions and practices that ensure that the institution's standards of performance are being achieved.

How is program assessment useful?

• Assists programs in documenting and building on program/department strengths.
• Helps programs identify areas of improvement and action plans to address them.
• Offers systematic and collaborative process for program/department decision-making.

Goals of Program-level Assessment of Student Learning

• Equitable: Ensures that all students, no matter their background, have the same opportunities for educational achievement.
• Improvement-focused: Aims to improve student learning of PLOs and program-level assessment of learning.
• Useful: Starts with clear, meaningful, measurable goals.  Assists curriculum revision and improvement, program review and/or accreditation.
• Continuous: Builds on previous assessments and "closes the loop" -- data informed program adjustments and future assessments measure their effectiveness.  All PLOs should be assessed every program review cycle (aim to evaluate 1 or 2 PLOs each year).

Program Improvement Cycle

1. Identify Goals: Which PLO or program-level assessment question do you want to explore this year?  What research question program inspires your assessment goal?
2. Identify Assessment Methods and Measures: Your curriculum map identifies the courses where you expect students to develop PLO knowledge and skills.  What specific course activities and assessments allow students to demonstrate proficiency in the PLO (direct evidence)?  Are there other relevant data to gather (e.g., student perceptions of learning or dashboard data; indirect evidence) that could contextualize direct evidence?
3. Collect Data:  Collect direct evidence that is valid, equitable, and ideally already embedded in the courses.  Additional data collected outside of courses may also be relevant to your research question (e.g., student exit or alumni surveys.)
4. Analyze and Interpret Results:  Examine what the evidence tells you about the progress in PLOs or other program goals.
5. Share Results:  Discuss the data with faculty, students, college level assessment committee and/or other relevant stakeholders to identify course of action.
6. Use Data to Inform Improvements:  Based on the various discussions of the evidence, what adjustments should be made to improve student learning in specific courses and/or across the entire program?  What is your plan to measure the effectiveness of changes?

Created in collaboration with the Academic Assessment Council (AAC).

Last updated: 8/26/2024