COURSE ASSESSMENT AND

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

Dr. Danielle Mihram

Distinguished Faculty Fellow
USC Center for Excellence in Teaching
dmihram@usc.edu

REFERENCES:

A. Course and Classroom Assessment

Angelo, Thomas A. and K. Patricia Cross (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques A Handbook for
College Teachers. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass (2nd ed.).

Gardiner, Lion F. (2007) Designing a College Curriculum. National Academy for Academic Leadership.
http://www.thenationalacademy.org/readings/designing.html

Kurfiss, J. G. (1988). Critical Thinking: Theory, Research, Practice, and Possibilities. (ASHE-ERIC
Higher Education Report No. 2). College Station, TX: Association for the Study of Higher Education.

Popham, J. (1999). Why standardized tests dont measure educational quality. Educational Leadership,
56(6), 8-15.

Richlin, Laurie (2006). Blueprint for Learning Constructing College Courses to Facilitate, Assess, and
Document Learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus.

B. Assessment in Higher Education

Meacham, J. & Ross Miller (Dec. 2006). Assessment of Liberal Education Outcomes: Findings from
Interviews with Faculty Administrators, and Students. Washington, DC: Association of American
Colleges and Universities.
http://www.teaglefoundation.org/learning/pdf/assessment_of_liberal_education_outcomes.pdf

Meacham, Jack (2004). Assessing General Education. Washington, DC: Association of American
Colleges and Universities.

Porter, Andrew (2004). Curriculum Assessment (appears as a chapter in: Complementary Methods for
Research in Education, by Judith L. Green, Gregory Camilli, and Patricia B. Elmore (Eds.) Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates; 3rd edition (2006).
www.secsupport.org/pdf/curricassess.pdf

Shepherd, Eric & Janet Godwin (2004). Assessments through the Learning Process. Questionmark White
paper. Norwalk, CT: Questionmark.
www.questionmark.com

Western Association of Schools & Colleges (2002). A Guide to Using Evidence in the Accreditation
process: A Resource to Support Institutions and Evaluation Teams [A Working Draft - January 2002].
Alameda, CA: WASC.
www.wascweb.org
ONLINE RESOURCES:

Assessment in general:
Mega-Site:
Internet Resources for Higher Education Outcomes Assessment
http://www2.acs.ncsu.edu/UPA/assmt/resource.htm

Re-Envisioning the Ph.D. (U. of Washington, 2003)

http://www.grad.washington.edu/envision/project_resources/national_recommend.html

Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (Penn State).

Enerson, Diane M., Kathryn M. Plank, and R. Neill Johnson An Introduction to Classroom
Assessment Techniques (no date given)
http://www.schreyerinstitute.psu.edu/Resources/class_assessment.asp

Teaching Assessment: Practices for Graduate Student Instructors (U. Texas Austin; no date
given)
http://www.utexas.edu/academic/diia/gsi/assessment/

Teaching and Learning Resources on the website of the USC Center for Excellence in Teaching:
Assessment of Teaching & Learning
http://www.usc.edu/programs/cet/resources/assessment/

Another good resource at U. Texas - Austin:

Teaching Assessment: Practices for Graduate Student Instructors
http://www.utexas.edu/academic/diia/gsi/assessment/

Rubrics:
Kathy Schrocks guide for Educators: Assessment and rubric information
http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/assess.html

The Rubricator (free membership for faculty [but read the terms])
http://www.rcampus.com/indexrubric.cfm
Rubric Gallery (Accounting [7 samples], Business [28 samples], Finance [18 samples]
http://www.rcampus.com/rubricshellc.cfm?mode=gallery&sms=publicrub&
Business rubrics (28 samples)
http://www.rcampus.com/rubricshellc.cfm?mode=gallery&sms=publicrub&sid=4&

Reflecting on ones teaching:

Grasha Teaching Styles Inventory: Version 3.0 [Richlin, pp. 129-131]
Self-scoring version available online at:
http://www.iats.com/publications/TSI.html

Grasha-Reichmann Student Learning Style Scales

Self-scoring version available online at:
http://www.iats.com/publications/GLSI.html
 Classroom Assessment Techniques -- Descriptions only

Assessing skill in analysis and critical thinking

Categorizing Grid CAT # 8, 7 160-163

Description:
The categorizing Grid is the paper-and-pencil equivalent of sorting objects in a warehouse and
putting like ones together in the right bins. Students are presented with a grid containing two or
three important categoriessuper-ordinate concepts they have been studyingalong with a
scrambled list of subordinate terms, images, equations, or other items that belong in one or
another of those categories, Learners are then given a very limited time to sort the subordinate
terms into the correct categories in the grid.

Purpose:
The categorizing Grid provides faculty with a snapshot of the students sorting rules. This
feedback allows the teacher to determine quickly whether, now, and how well students
understand what goes with what. The Categorizing grid prompts students to make explicit the
implicit rules they are using to categorize information in their memories. As a consequence it
gives learners the opportunity to rethink and revise their categorizing rules. By making these
implicit ways of organizing implicit, students and teachers can gain more control over what is
remembered, how it is remembered, and how ell it can be recalled when needed.
(Example of use by a faculty teaching: Introduction to Management Theory).

Assessing skill in application and performance

Direct paraphrasing CAT #23, 7 232-235

Description:
In many fields, particularly in the professions and the service sector, success depends on ones
ability to translate highly specialized information into language the clients or customers will
understand. Directed Paraphrasing is an assessment technique designed to assess and help
develop that valuable skill. In this CAT, students are directed top paraphrase part of a lesson for
a specific audience and purpose, using their own words.

Purpose:
On the simplest level, Directed Paraphrasing provides feedback on students ability to summarize
and restate important information and concepts in their own words; it therefore allows faculty to
assess how well students have understood and internalized that learning. At the same time, this
technique assesses the students ability to translate that learning into a form that someone outside
the classroom can understand. The fact that the paraphrase is directed, aimed at a specific
audience for a specific reason, makes the paraphrasing task more demanding and more useful
than simple paraphrasing, for students and faculty alike.
(Example of use by a faculty teaching: Small-Business Finance)

Assessing students awareness of their attitudes and values

Profiles of Admirable Individuals CAT # 30, 8 267-278

Description:
 This straightforward technique requires that students write a brief, focused profile of an
individualin a field related to the coursewhose values, skills, or actions they greatly admire.
For example, each student in a social work course might be asked to write a one-page profile of a
social worker whom that particular student particularly admires.

Purpose:
This technique assesses what students value by asking them (1) to select and profile an individual
in the field whose values and behavior they admire and (2) to explain what they find admirable
about that individual and why. This information can help faculty understand the images and
values students associate with the best practice and practitioners in the discipline under study.
Profiles of Admirable Individuals also force students to assess their own values. And feedback
on the responses of other students helps them realize that, in any classroom, there will be different
sets of value in play.
(Example of use by a faculty teaching: Ethics in Business)