What are ethics? Ethics are moral principles that govern a person’s behavior or the conducting of an activity. In higher education, we must use ethical methods when assessing learning. While Accreditation is important because of the benefit to receive Title IV funding, Institutions should conduct assessments to produce a great service to students. Assessment outcomes should not only be for economic benefits but to gain knowledge for continuous improvement and the overall experience of the student.

Institution administration, Teachers and Academic Staff all play a role to help and promote ethical behaviors. All Faculty and Staff should incorporate ethical behaviors in everyday activities. Student support tools should be created to focus on student support for retention and completion. In addition, design and planning tools, to support curriculum, learning design, and the environment in which learning is promoted. (Slade, S. 2016) The quality of learning should be one of  the main focuses of an institution, “performance data should be used to help better understand how students use course resources as a part of their learning; aspects of peer learning; and whether aspects of study are avoided or found to be particularly challenging in order to highlight content for redesign” (Slade, S. 2016).

Ethical considerations should be used when conducting assessments, conducting research and decision making. When doing so, assessment data will be more accurate and can benefit the Institutions and its students. The goal of higher education is to serve the public good, thus assessment data should be revealed to the institution’s community, whether good or bad. When making the information public, insitions should also state how they will actively improve on each matter.

Should Assessment data only be revealed the institution’s community or made public to anyone, anywhere?

Reference

Slade, S. (2016). Application of student data in higher education: Issues and ethical considerations (pdf). ITHAKA S+R.  Retrieved from http://www.sr.ithaka.org/wpcontent/uploads/2016/09/SR_Report_Slade_Applications_Student_Data_Higher_Ed_090616.pdf.

To have a culture of assessment with an institution, all staff and faculty need to have the attitude and behavior that supports the assessment of student learning outcomes. In order to establish a culture of assessment, all moving administration members would need to support assessments of student learning outcomes. Having a culture of assessment is beneficial because staff will “automatically build an assessment component when proposing a new activity or program” (Schuh, Biddis, Kinzie, 2016). According to Wendy Weiner of the American association of University and Professors, there are 15 elements needed to achieve a culture of assessment, “clear general education goals, common use of assessment-related terms, faculty ownership of assessment programs, ongoing professional development, administrative encouragement of assessment, practical assessment plans, systematic assessment, the setting of student learning outcomes for all courses and programs, comprehensive program review, assessment of co-curricular activities, assessment of overall institutional effectiveness, informational forums about assessment, inclusion of assessment in plans and budgets, celebration of successes, and, finally, responsiveness to proposals for new endeavors related to assessment”(Weiner, W. 2009).

I want to expand on the four that really stuck out to me . First is ongoing professional development, let’s face it, Assessment can be stressful, confusing and dare I say a pain! Not everyone may be experienced in the world of Assessments so it is important for an institution to invest in professional development programs. A professional development workshop geared towards Assessments will help build an understanding of assessment concepts. “By establishing assessment workshops, the college demonstrates its commitment to assessment and raises expectations among faculty. The workshops lead to conversations about assessment, encourage faculty to use the language of assessment, and help them gain competence and confidence. It will become clear that assessment is accessible and important”(Weiner, W. 2009).

Next is Administrative Support and Understanding, assessment is about Accountability. Presidents of Universities need to see their role and take part in it. Presidents should be reviewing student satisfaction surveys, assessing institutional effectiveness, and using findings from assessments in budgeting and planning.  Next is to create a practical, sustainable Assessment Plan. “When a college community develops an assessment plan, it must keep in mind the need to do so cost-effectively and realistically and to revisit the plan frequently” (Weiner, W. 2009).  One example is to plan through individual faculty members. Have each faculty member select a learning objective to asses each year. Results from these assessments will inform future assessments within the department or course what to change and what to focus on. This method integrates the assessment into normal course implementation rather than an extra task for already overworked faculty.

Lastly is Information sharing, whether good or bad, it is needed to have a successful assessment program and provides opportunities for change. Departments need to see what each other are doing and how well their efforts are working. “It permits faculty to identify activities from other disciplines that they can combine with their own to produce richer results, and it highlights areas of the curriculum that can benefit from cross-disciplinary efforts” (Weiner, W. 2009).

If Institutions aren’t already doing so they need to start creating a culture of assessment. Continuous improvement in assessment “shows how it contributes to the education of students, why its programs are important to student’s education. Why the investment is worth the increased cost to students and what system is in place to ensure that students money is spent efficiently”(Schuh, Biddis, Kinzie, 2016).

Who’s role is it within an Institution to enforce a culture of assessment within an all departments?

References :

Weiner, W. (2009, July/August). Establishing a Culture of Assessment. Retrieved from https://www.aaup.org/article/establishing-culture-assessment#.WxGiF-4vzRY

Schuh, J. H., Biddix, J. P., Dean, L. A., & Kinzie, J. (2016). Assessment in student affairs. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

 

 

People look to higher education as means of greater education and career opportunities to be able to provide for themselves or families. Higher Education institutions are accountable for the success of students, institutions need to be able to retain students by providing support systems such as academic advising and adequate financial aid advising.

An institution is accountable for graduation rates, time to completion, costs, and alumni income. Institutions are accountable to provide quality education, coursework that will prepare students for the work industry. “According to data from 2010 surveyed the American Management Association, recent college graduates were more than three times as likely to be considered below average and of the lowest ability by executives compared to experienced workers (19.6 percent compared to 6.1 percent)” (Murray, Vicky 2011). As stated earlier, people decide to get a college education to be able to find a career, so institutions, need to provide quality education and hire experienced professors to educate students. The institution needs to do a better job of preparing faculty to teach and evaluate their performance. Faculty should be held accountable for learning outcomes of the student.

Now let’s talk Accreditation. A higher education institution is accountable to its students to keep that accreditation. Accreditation is important because it shows if an institution exceeds the minimum standard of quality. It validates colleges and universities. It is one of the biggest and most important evaluation an institution will face. If an institution practices line up and they adhere to their mission statement, it shows great accountability to their students. An Institution’s mission should focus on serving student need by providing programs, services, and environment that support academic success and student development. (Schuh, J. ch.5 2016). 

What will the Future of a College look like with Increasing Accountability?

Reference:

Schuh, J. H., Biddix, J. P., Dean, L. A., & Kinzie, J. (2016). Assessment in student affairs. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Murray, V. E.  (2011).  10 Questions State Legislators Should Ask About Higher Education.  American Legislative Exchange Council.

Assessment and Evaluation have similarities but are different. I have often times confused the two and have thought that they essentially were the same. assessment is the process of providing evidence of resources, implementation actions, and outcomes, with the purpose to improve instruction, programs, and services. In some cases, the goal may be to view what the institution is currently accomplishing. Assessment measures what an individual knows and can do. “It is the systematic collection, review, and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning and development” (Banta, T.w. 2015, ). Evaluation focuses on grades and reflects on the classroom components and the professor. Evaluation is the final review on a professors instruction to gauge quality. Assessment is process oriented where Evaluation is product oriented.

Assessment can be used to measure an institution’s overall effectiveness by measuring student learning, to evaluate academic progress, student support services such as advising and even administrative services. One really important aspect of assessment is to determine an institutions effectiveness is Accreditation such as disciplinary and regional accreditation. Disciplinary accreditation assesses a program’s effectiveness through a major field. Regional accreditation measures an institution’s overall effectiveness.  Assesment is ongoing because it helps a school to see where they stand and how it can continually improve. Assesment is much more thorough and grand than an evaluation.

 

Reference :

Banta, T.W. & Palomba, C.A. (2015). Assessment essentials: Planning, implementing, and improving assessment in higher education. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.