Goals? Outcomes? What?

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1 Goals? Outcomes? What? Assessment begins not with creating or implementing tests, assignments, or other assessment tools but by deciding on your goals: what do you want students to learn and why. Suskie, 2009 What do you want to achieve and why?

writing, reading comprehension, critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, information

2 Cornell Matrix Cornell Educational Objectives One: Be able to acquire, analyze, interpret, and communicate knowledge; possess skills including, but not limited to, writing, reading comprehension, critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, information literacy, and oral communication; Department / Program Goals Intended Student (Learning) Outcomes

3 Goals Goals state what you, your colleagues, or your college aim to achieve. They can describe aims outside the teaching and learning process as well as within it. Suskie, 2009

4 Writing Goals Focus on what the program/department aims to achieve. Be specific. Define terms. Articulate time frames. Use action verbs. Be realistic.

5 Goal Examples The Geology Department will: enhance all middle and upper level courses by to include extensive group or individual research projects; require all Geology majors to complete at least one field course; foster student appreciation for other cultures via participation in field study in the Bahamas and/or New Zealand; secure funding to send 10 students per year to the Geological Society of America annual conference.

6 Goal Examples The Office of Admission seeks to: identify, attract, select, and enroll a wellrounded and diverse community of students who will benefit from our distinctive learning environment; and, achieve enrollment and revenue goals which will allow the institution to remain a healthy and vibrant community.

7 Give it a try Think about your department / program / office. Make a list in your own words of what you re trying to accomplish. Select one item on your list. Write that item as a goal statement. OR Review your existing goals to determine how well they capture that item.

8 Outcomes Outcomes are goals that refer to a destination rather than the path taken to get there the end rather than the means, the outcome rather than the process.an outcome explains why we do what we do. Suskie, 2009

9 Learning Outcomes Learning outcomes describe how students will be different because of a learning experience. More specifically, learning outcomes are the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and habits of mind that students take with them from a learning experience. Suskie, 2009

10 Learning Outcomes Translate intentions into actions. Describe what people should be able to do, value, or know as a result of participation in a learning activity. Articulate what people should be able to demonstrate / produce. Use action verbs.

11 SWiBAT Upon completion of the pre-ninja program, students will be able to: rip a man s heart out and show it to him before he dies; spin slowly in mid-air; skulk undetected through abandoned factories at night; mix black clothes with other black clothes without clashing. Dean Dad, Inside Higher Ed, April 21, 2008

12 Bloom s Taxonomy Evaluation Appraise, compare, conclude, critique, defend, interpret Compile, compose, explain, revise, reconstruct, combine Synthesis Analysis Compare, contrast, deconstruct, differentiate, analyze Compute, construct, modify, predict, use, solve, relate Application Define, describe, identify, know, recognize, recall Comprehension Knowledge Comprehend, convert, explain, distinguish Bloom (1956)

13 Bloom s Taxonomy Affective* receiving phenomena responding to phenomena valuing organization internalizing values ask, describe, select, follow, select answer, assist, conform, discuss demonstrate, justify, differentiate, initiate adhere, formulate, arrange, relate act, display, influence, question *Krathwohl, Bloom, Masia (1973)

14 SMART Outcomes Specific: Clear and definite terms describing expected abilities, knowledge, values, attitudes, and performance. Measurable: It is feasible to get the data; data are accurate / believable; can be assessed in more than one way. Aggressive but Attainable: Consider stretch targets to improve programs.

15 SMART Outcomes Realistic: Take note of the timeframe and the resources you have available. Time-bound: Describe where you would like students to be within a specified period of time. Adapted from Paula Krist, Director of Operational Effectiveness and Assessment Support, University of Central Florida, May 2006.

16 Cornell Educational Objectives Two: Understand the methods and practices of the natural sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities: as a result of their experiences with various methods of inquiry, graduates will recognize and apply different disciplinary and interdisciplinary forms of thinking; as a result of their experiences with a major or concentration, graduates will possess depth of understanding and research skills in at least one method of inquiry; Three: Possess intercultural knowledge and recognize global perspectives; Four: Integrate and transfer knowledge and skills from one setting to another; Five: Be cognizant of their responsibility for individual, civic, and social choices Department / Program Goals Every Geology major will successfully complete a core curriculum of 5 courses and a set of 3 electives. Over the course of their junior and senior years, at least 75% of majors will attend a science-oriented conference. 50% of students will study off-campus 100% of graduating seniors will have participated in community service Intended Student (Learning) Outcomes (Geology): Graduating seniors will be able to conduct original scientific research and present it in writing and orally to a scientific audience. (Walvoord, 2004) Students will demonstrate the ability to perceive any given event from more than one cultural viewpoint. (Global Learning for All, 2009)

17 Outcomes Examples As a result of their co-curricular experiences, students will: Demonstrate behaviors to maintain a healthy lifestyle and relationships; Engage in civic, leadership, and campus activities; Develop effective leadership skills/traits; Consider differing social, political, and cultural viewpoints and share perspectives in a mutually respectful manner;

18 Outcomes Examples As a result of their experiences in a Living Learning Community, students will: be able to analyze and interpret a societal issue in-depth; create an action plan to address issues and concerns that arise from researching the group s topic; be able to articulate the purpose of roommate agreement.

19 Outcomes Examples Upon completion of the Studio Art major, students will: demonstrate competent and creative studio practice in at least one medium; be able to locate their art within an historical continuum of art ideas and in relation to established art antecedents.

20 Give it a try Think about your department / program / office. Make a list in your own words of what you think [students] are learning. Write a quick / simple learning outcome. Try using one of these sentence stems: Upon completion of, students will As a result of participation in [xyz] program, [Cornell alumni] will SWiBAT formula: Students will be able to

21 Verbs cognitive affective evaluation appraise, compare, conclude, critique, defend, interpret receiving phenomena ask, describe, select, follow, select synthesis compile, compose, explain, revise, reconstruct, combine responding to phenomena answer, assist, conform, discuss analysis compare, contrast, deconstruct, differentiate, analyze valuing demonstrate, justify, differentiate, initiate application compute, construct, modify, predict, use, solve, relate organization adhere, formulate, arrange, relate comprehension comprehend, convert, explain, distinguish internalizing values act, display, influence, question knowledge define, describe, identify, know, recognize, recall

22 Consider Meaningful: Is this outcome aligned with the division or department missions or goals? Manageable: Is this outcome actually achievable and assessable? Measurable: Can you articulate how you would know you achieved the outcome?

23 Questions & Concerns

24 For next time Completed steps Finalize mission statements. Draft and/or revise your department s goals. Draft and/or revise your department s intended student (learning) outcomes.* Readings Making Claims About Student Learning (Maki, 2004)

Mathematics Program Assessment Plan

Mathematics Program Assessment Plan Introduction This assessment plan is tentative and will continue to be refined as needed to best fit the requirements of the Board of Regent s and UAS Program Review