Lessons Learned and Next Steps

Lessons Learned

• Start small, keep it simple, and build on what you already do
• It's not as hard as you think
• Communicate with your colleagues, administration, and students
• There are more resources out there than you think
• Define terms, establish common language
• Be clear about what you are trying to assess/evaluate/learn
• Start from your goals
• Know what is expected of you
• Align the departmental review process with the assessment of student learning
• There are a variety of ways to obtain the needed assessment information
• Know your audience
• Complete the loop – make sure participants see final results and use the results
• This is an ongoing process – continuous improvement
• Don't give up
• Don't work alone
• This process of evaluation and modification is a helpful tool tested in other parts of society
• The skills from geology research are very helpful here
• Your program assessment will be unique – because you are unique – but there are processes and tools that you can draw on from others
• It can be fun, interesting or valuable—figure out how to make it so
• Start with things your colleagues enjoy or are interested in
• Be proactive, use the challenge to your advantage
• Choose your reviewers carefully
• Become part of the institutional team working on shared challenges, use assessment to demonstrate how your outcomes support institutional goals, position your department as an institutional leader
• Use your assessment data to argue for needed resources or continued support
• Think about peer institutions
• Use available data (e.g. AGI) to establish national context
• Assignment grades are part of the assessment toolbox: they need to be aligned with outcomes, based on rubrics or other transparent processes, and reliable
• Assessment tools can be used at multiple levels including graduate levels
• Don't overlook the importance of the impact of graduate programs on your undergraduate programs (consider this, demonstrate this, assess this)
• Develop a culture of assessment where it is part of what we do is fundamental to success and to good teaching

Next Steps

• Go back to departments and move forward, create a culture of assessment
• Develop a community wide culture of assessment
• Provide examples of how departments have used assessment to change and then assess impact of change
• Develop a list of important metrics that departments would like to see for comparative purpose for AGI to move forward
• Traveling workshop program to assist departments
• Develop pool of people who can be departmental reviewers on website
• Regional meetings (system meetings) using same accrediting body
• More discussion of setting/assessing content outcomes—how to limit numbers, now to assess
• Continue to share activities with assessments and use in outcomes assessment