Workshop Descriptions

Classroom Assessment Techniques (“CATS”)

The use of classroom assessment techniques, most widely associated with the work of Thomas A. Angelo and K. Patricia Cross, has proliferated in both K-12 and university teaching. Often used as a type of formative assessment, instructors find that these can be powerful tools to improve the attainment of learning outcomes. Further, most are easy to administer. After a short introduction defining key terms and further benefits of using classroom assessment techniques, this one-hour workshop will focus on:

• Strategic use of CATS—when are they most effectively used?
• The most popular CATS—applications to a variety of disciplines including case studies and extensive handouts will be provided.
• Choosing CATS for particular purposes
• CATS as a component of an assessment plan

Course Level Learning Outcomes

Faculty wonder about the recent emphasis on Outcomes-Based Assessment by accrediting organizations and program review committees. Is this just another fad, or can it really benefit your teaching? This one-hour mini-workshop will demonstrate how effective learning outcomes can significantly improve your teaching. Topics include:

• How can good Learning Outcomes strengthen your course design?
• What categories of Learning Outcomes should your course include?
• What are the characteristics of effective Learning Outcomes?
• How can rubrics take the fuzziness out of Learning Outcomes and out of student assessment?

Critical Thinking Skills Assessment

The development of critical thinking is crucial to higher education. There is considerable consensus, though, that it means something different in each discipline, and assessing its outcomes appears even more elusive. This one-hour mini-workshop outlines some common denominators in the debate about critical thinking and proposes an assessment strategy. Topics include:

• Critical thinking and the importance of ill-defined problems
• A developmental perspective on critical thinking in college
• Distinguishing between different types of knowledge
• Characteristics of exemplary tasks for assessing critical thinking
• Using a rubric to assess critical thinking outcomes

Departmental/Program Level Learning Outcomes

Developing departmental/program level learning outcomes is critical to the foundation of an effective departmental/program assessment plan. Topics addressed in this workshop include:

• The integration of mission, learning goals, objectives and outcomes;
• Characteristics of good learning outcomes;
• Beyond Bloom--Learning taxonomies;
• The importance of progressive balance; and
• Practical approaches to developing departmental/ program goals and learning outcomes.

Handouts and resource materials will include discipline specific examples and will vary depending on those in attendance.

Developing Learning Outcomes PowerPoint Presentation

Developing Learning Outcomes Outline

Departmental/Program Assessment Plan

Each department or program is charged with developing or refining their assessment plan for their unit. Those attending the workshop should be familiar with the new NCA criteria. Information on this can be found on this website. In addition, handouts on this topic are available upon request from NEIU’s Center for Teaching and Learning. In preparation for the NCA visit in 2006, this one-hour workshop will focus on:

• Key features of a good departmental/program assessment plan with the new criteria in mind.
• A sampling of assessment plans from a variety of disciplines for review and group discussion to discern best practices in light of the above.
• Presentation of a “model” assessment plan.
• Procedural issues in working with departmental faculty and staff in your unit to develop or refine the assessment plan

Developing Effective Rubrics

Rubrics have become a popular means for describing in detail the criteria an instructor applies to assessing any type of student work (papers, presentations, projects, performances, etc.). Students tend to like them because they know in advance the rationale on which their work is graded; instructors have come to appreciate them because they make their grading and feedback tasks more objective and sometimes faster. This one-hour mini-workshop addresses the following topics:

• What are the key components of a good rubric?
• How do rubrics facilitate assessment?
• How can rubrics improve teaching and student learning?
• What are typical pitfalls and misunderstandings regarding rubrics?

The Practice of Painless Data Collection, Part I

You have established departmental/program learning outcomes and now clearly know what it is that you want to assess within your department or program. What is the next step? Making decisions about HOW to assess given the time, financial and faculty/staff parameters existing within your department or program and college is the key decision that must be made. However, in order to make these decisions you need information about what data is or is not currently available as well as how to access this information or develop the data you need. This workshop will cover the following topics:

• Direct and indirect methods of assessment—definition of terms and examples of each.
• Advantages and disadvantages of locally developed approaches and instruments vs. standardized or nationally normed instruments.
• Selective use of existing items in standardized instruments currently used by NEIU as a complementary strategy to your data collection efforts
• Embedded approaches to data collection
• Assessment software for local data collection efforts.
• Extensive handouts and a few case studies will be provided. This one-hour workshop will be offered on ....

The Practice of Painless Data Collection, Part II

While the focus of Part I is examining and critically reviewing embedded approaches and locally developed instruments, the focus of Part II is to provide information on the wide variety of standardized and nationally normed instruments and their potential uses as part of an assessment effort. Those most often used for regional accreditation will be discussed and actual samples of some of the instruments will be provided. Handouts with detailed information regarding publishers, pricing, and other testing information will also be provided.

This one-hour workshop will be offered on .... In addition, a two-hour session encompassing Painless Data Collection, Parts I and II will be offered on ....

Events

Teleconference

Many scholars have written about assessment at multiple levels and have shared their findings at a variety of conferences. In April 2002, the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Student in Transition sponsored a unique teleconference on “Assessing What we Value.” Presenters are nationally renowned experts in the field and while the focus is on the assessment of the first-year experience, the information shared is valuable for general assessment of student learning outcomes. Among the topics presented are: strategies to improve student learning, strategies to maximize assessment quality, organizing for assessment, and measures of student learning. To view materials from this teleconference click onto the following link:

The First Year of College: Assessing What We Value

Calendar Of Upcoming Conferences

NCTLA Assessment Institutes

February 2005
March 2005
These are sponsored by ACT and Penn State's College of Education. For more information, please go to http://www.ed.psu.edu/cshe/nctla.html

General Education and Assessment:
Creating Shared Responsibility for Learning Across the Curriculum

February 17-19, 2005
May 20-25, 2005 (Institute)
The American Association for Colleges and universities (AACU) sponsors several meetings through out the year. For more information, please go to http://www.aacu-edu.org/

The 110th Annual Meeting
"Becoming a Learning Focused Organization: Conversations and Commitments"

April 8-12, 2005
The Higher Learning Commission of The North Central Association Of Colleges and Schools invites faculty and administrators to participate. Those who wish to focus more on student learning as well as those who wish to better prepare for regional accreditation would be well-served by attending. For more information, please go to http://www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org/AnnualMeeting/

Assessment Conference 2005:
"Charting New Territory"

June 12-14, 2005
For more information, please go to http://www.aahe.org/assessment/2005/assessment2005.htm