Assessment

As part of the requirements for reaffirmation of accreditation, each department and program is to implement a full cycle assessment program for each of its undergraduate majors and all graduate programs.

Full cycle assessment is an ongoing, iterative process that uses results to inform decisions and make improvements. In order to improve, careful planning is necessary. Learning goals and outcomes must be clearly specified, appropriate measures must be selected, data collection must be carefully executed, and most importantly, results must be shared for improvements to occur.

Departments and programs should specify their full-cycle assessment programs in an assessment plan and report on progress made during program review. Units that undergo accreditations by their professional organizations (e.g., ABET, NCATE) or are required to collect assessment data for their academic divisions (e.g., CAS Writing Outcomes Assessment) may use the assessment data collected for these processes.

Units who do not already have a full-cycle assessment plan or wish to revise an existing one my consult the template and guidelines for developing assessment plans and other assessment resources on the Center for the Enhancement of Learning, Teaching and University Assessment (CELTUA) website. Or contact Dr. Cecilia Shore, Director, CELTUA, at shorec@muohio.edu.