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Assessment Frequently Asked Questions
The following are answers to common questions about assessment at Cochise College and assessment in general. For more information, please consult the Cochise College Program/Discipline Handbook. From the handbook, you can also find the URLs for websites devoted to assessment.
1. What is assessment of student learning?
Assessment is the systematic collection, review, and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning. Thus, the emphasis of assessment is on programs rather than individual students (or instructors).
The assessment process begins with the formulation of statements of intended learning outcomes. That is, what students should know, understand, and be able to do with their knowledge. The second step is to design and/or select a data-gathering process to determine whether the intended learning outcomes have been achieved. The third step is to implement the process and obtain the results. Lastly, assessment results must be discussed and used to improve student learning. Assessment of student learning begins with educational values and clear, explicit purposes. Assessment reflects an understanding of learning as multidimensional, integrated, and revealed over time. Thus, assessment is ongoing, not episodic.
2. How does classroom assessment relate to program/discipline assessment and how does program/discipline assessment fit in with the College’s overall assessment efforts?
Perhaps this question can best be answered by addressing each part in sequence:
Classroom assessment involves assessing student learning in a particular course. This is often accomplished through CATs (Classroom Assessment Techniques), which are quick, ungraded, classroom assignments used to provide feedback for determining student understanding of particular lessons.
Program/discipline assessment is an ongoing, district-wide process whose primary purpose is to improve program-level instruction and student learning. This is accomplished via a process whereby every year each program or discipline designs and implements an assessment plan, analyzes the data collected, and uses these results to devise action plans aimed at improving student learning within the program or discipline.
The College’s overall assessment efforts include classroom assessment, program/discipline assessment, and assessment of general education. The goal of assessment of student learning at Cochise College is to improve student learning and thus help the College fulfill its educational mission. Assessment provides evidence of how well Cochise College is meeting its objectives and helps identify areas for improvement.
3. Which and how many faculty members of a given program should participate in the assessment process?
All faculty, both full time and associate, should participate in assessment. All have a stake in the success of their respective program or discipline.
4. How is assessment handled in areas that are not officially programs?
If the area of study is not a recognized program or is used primarily to fulfill AGEC general education requirements, a course that most represents the culmination of student learning in the area of study or a course that has consistently high enrollments should be selected. This may be a capstone course, a general education class, or the last in a sequence of courses.
5. For “split" departments (developmental and college-level), does each part need to develop an assessment plan?
Yes, these are considered separate assessment areas.
6. Does an assessment plan have to be prepared for each course within a program/discipline or within a sequence of courses?
No, only one assessment plan is required for an entire program/discipline or sequence of courses. This plan should reflect the cumulative learning outcomes for the students exiting the series of courses in this discipline. Nonetheless, to achieve this goal, a particular course within a program/discipline may become the focus of the assessment plan; for example, to assess the cumulative learning outcomes for students who have completed composition courses at Cochise College, the composition program may decide to measure the achievement of students completing English 102.
7. If a program/discipline is offered every semester, is the department required to have a plan for each semester?
No, data and results only have to be gathered, analyzed, and reported to the Assessment Committee once during each yearly cycle. A department may decide, for internal purposes, to implement a plan each semester but only the official track should be submitted and reported to the Assessment Committee.
8. Can a program/discipline be moved from one track, or semester, to the other?
Yes, if circumstances necessitate the change, such as enrollment or scheduling change within a program/discipline. A request should be made to the Assessment Committee indicating the reason for the change.
9. How, why, or when would or should a department rotate courses to be assessed?
It is important to keep in mind that we are trying to assess programs, not individual courses. Faculty within a department may decide to assess student achievement in one or more courses as a means to gain insight into the level of success of student learning throughout the program. There is no real rule that courses need to be rotated.
10. How do faculty within a department identify learning outcomes?
Some learning outcomes can be mandated by outside agencies. Others have arisen through discussion among faculty who have tried to answer the question of what knowledge or skills their students should demonstrate upon exiting the program.
11. Who chooses lead instructors?
This is a departmental decision. Typically the department chair would make this decision.
12. Why do the criteria for success include only those students who successfully completed the program?
We are assessing programs, not individual students. We want to determine how well our programs are actually achieving what they purport to achieve. It’s important for the faculty to keep in mind that the criteria for success apply to students whom the program has already deemed successful. Thus we need to measure how students who successfully complete a program meet the intended student learning outcomes. Tracking the number of students who do not successfully complete a program and analyzing the reasons for their failure may be a valuable practice but is not the function of program/discipline assessment.
13. How do faculty decide on the best criteria for success? What are the best and most appropriate measures to employ?
Because we are trying to assess the overall success of programs, the criteria for success should target the achievement of only those students who have successfully completed the program. It’s important for the faculty to keep in mind that the criteria for success apply to students whom the program has already deemed successful. Because of this, in some cases, the criteria for success could be close to, or actually, 100%.
14. Where do lead instructors or department chairs submit their assessment plans?
Plans are submitted to the Assessment Committee via the administrative support person who can also be reached by phone at 520-458-8278 ext. 2154.
15. Where can one get help for developing an assessment plan?
The Assessment Committee is here to help. There are a number of individual members of the Assessment Committee who, through research, attending conferences, and hands-on experience, have gained significant expertise with assessment of student learning. The committee as a whole and these individuals will be glad to do what they can to help. A list of current Assessment Committee members can be found on the Membership page of the Assessment Committee website. The director of the Office of Curriculum, Learning and Assessment can also help in developing an assessment plan.
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