Outcomes Assessment Overview
Why do we Assess?
We assess to provide evidence of resources, implementation actions, and outcomes, to improve teaching, learning, co-curricular programs, and services in higher education (Banta & Palomba, 2014). The term assessment has come to be used as an overarching term in higher education, to include all activities designed for quality improvement, including student learning assessment, institutional effectiveness, and administrative effectiveness. Assessment is more than simply measuring and keeping data, it is the process of utilizing collected data as evidence that something is of quality. If deficiencies are measured, such data can be used to make evidence-based changes. The purpose of assessment is two-fold: it improves student outcomes and improves the work done at the university.
The Goals of the HSC assessment framework are multipurpose and include:
-
- Recognize importance of assessment
- Improve student learning, satisfaction, and attainment of education outcomes
- Support achievement of overall programmatic goals including faculty development, scholarly activity, and professional and community service
- Educate administrators, faculty, and staff on assessment best-practices
- Engage in intentional, evidence-based improvements
- Strengthen collective effectiveness of organization
- Provide evidence to HSC stakeholders
- Deliver on the promise of our mission, vision, and values
- Identify administrators, faculty, and staff to engage in formal assessment activities, including oversight of assessment tool development,
- Identify data collection, storage, and analysis of assessment results
- Establish dissemination of results to relevant stakeholders
- Establish appropriate timelines for administration of elements of the Assessment Framework and ensure those timelines are met
Contact: Outcomes Assessment
For more information or assistance please contact:
- Valerie Johnson, MFA; Director of Outcomes Assessment (Valerie.Johnson@unthsc.edu)
Social media