Program Assessment
No matter how good we are, there is always room for improvement. Program assessment facilitates the ongoing improvement of educational quality, student learning, and student success.
Faculty define program and course student learning objectives or outcomes (SLOs) in the curriculum development and approval processes. SLOs are statements about what students should be able to do, know, or demonstrate at the completion of a course and/or program. They are not only the cornerstone of the curriculum but also of learning assessment; SLOs bring focus to what is important and what should be used to measure student learning as part of a program assessment plan.
In 2022-23, the Program Assessment Review (PAR) in Transition was established to provide an academic program planning and assessment process that acknowledged the integration of Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield curricula into the unified program curricula for Commonwealth University. The PAR in Transition requested an annual report from each program with a brief description (Table 1, p. 2 of narrative sections), Program Student Learning Objectives (Table 2), Curriculum Map (Table 3), an Assessment Plan (Table 4), and an Annual Summary and Action Plan (p.3 of narrative sections). The PAR in Transition User Guide articulated the step-by-step process and offered templates for developing and implementing a program assessment plan and annual report. Programs that were approved after the May 31 submission date or did not submit a PAR can still complete these documents and upload them to the SharePoint site. Programs that submitted the PAR received a completed Academic / Academic Support Assessment rubric as a means of feedback intended to help improve the academic planning and assessment processes. The October 2023 Session (see section below) also provided feedback and exemplar documents with tips about continuous improvement moving forward.
In 2023-24, the Program Assessment Review (PAR) or program annual report will be completed in the new Commonwealth University instance of Nuventive Solutions Premier. The platform includes tabs for general information, curriculum maps, assessment plans / results, and an annual summary and action plan based on data collected and reported by the program and / or institutional research (e.g., see Program Review Data section and dashboards below). This PAR - Nuventive User Guide provides instructions about how to access Nuventive, complete the screens needed for the program annual report, and submit outcomes (see the November 2023 Session below). These annual reports with results / outcomes will be due again on May 31.
Once the State System BOG Policy 1986-04-A: Program Review and associated procedures are available later this year, the annual report format may be revised to reflect data requested for five-year reviews but not currently submitted as part of the annual PAR report.
Assessment Workshops
Presentation Slideshow Zoom Recording
All other session materials can be found here.
This session reviews the 2023-24 Program Assessment Review (PAR) Annual Report process in the Nuventive Solutions Premier platform. Materials for this November 2023 Session are available on the OIE SharePoint Site.
This session provided a follow-up on the 2022-23 Program Assessment Review (PAR), shared key insights about opportunities for improvement, and previewed this year’s program assessment process using Nuventive Solutions Premier. The slide deck, exemplar documents, and other materials are available on the OIE SharePoint Site for the October 2023 Session.
This working session reviewed examples of PAR tables 2, 3, & 4 as linked in the main text above.
This session covers the Commonwealth University assessment structure and roles as well as the PAR in transition user guides and templates. Zoom recording is available.
On August 11, 2022, Dr. Levine-Laufgraben delivered the second workshop, Refreshing How We are Assessing: Creating Practical and Meaningful Assessments and Using Assessment to Enhance Learning. This workshop built on the June 6th session and incorporated content requested in a follow-up survey. The Zoom recording is available to view.
OIE sponsored a two-workshop series to assist faculty with best practices as they developed curricula, student learning objectives, and assessment grids for integrated programs in Commonwealth University. On June 6, 2022, Dr. Jodi Levine-Laufgraben delivered the first workshop entitled Refreshing How We Are Assessing.
Program Review Data
In addition to SLOs, programs should articulate other relevant goals and identify measures of student success. Institutional Research provides trend data at the program level so faculty can determine to what degree goals, criteria, and performance targets are met. Other such information as occupational demand, market supply, specialized program standards, etc., may also inform action planning.
Dashboard User Guide Dashboard Survey
The fall student data report displays enrollment by major in the academic structure as of the fall census files and includes tabs for headcount, FTE, percent female, percent underrepresented minority, full-time headcount, part-time headcount, and class.
The spring student data report displays enrollment by major in the academic structure as of the spring census files and includes tabs for headcount, FTE, percent female, percent underrepresented minority, full-time headcount, part-time headcount, and class.
The retention report provides second-year retention for the traditional full-time bachelor’s degree-seeking cohort by major. The report includes tabs for number of new students in the cohort, second-year rate in the university, second-year rate in major, second-year rate for female students in the university, second-year rate for male students in the university, and second-year rate for underrepresented minority students in the university.
The retention report provides retention for new graduate students that began in summer or fall by major. The report includes tabs for number of new students , the spring retention rate, and the second-year retention rate in the university.
Graduate Retention Dashboard Graduate Retention Summary Dashboard
The completions report provides the annual completions by major/degree and includes tabs for degree, percent of degrees by underrepresented minority students, and percentage of degrees by female students.
The graduation rates report provides four and six year graduation rates for the traditional full-time bachelor’s degree-seeking cohort by major.
Graduation Rates Dashboard Graduation Rates Summary Dashboard
The completion rate report provides graduation rates for new graduate students that began in summer or fall by major. The report includes tabs for number of new students, second-year completion rate, third-year completion rate, and fourth-year completion rate in the program.
Graduation Completion Rates Dashboard Graduation Completion Rates Summary Dashboard
The course data report provides annualized course by subject area. The report includes tabs for annual credits, annual FTE, FTE in 100-level courses, FTE in 200-level courses, FTE in 300-level courses, FTE in 400-level courses, FTE in undergraduate courses, and FTE in graduate courses.
The faculty report is based on the fall HR census and includes data by program (cost center). The report includes tabs for headcount, FTE, female faculty, underrepresented minority faculty, faculty with tenure or on tenure track, and full-time faculty.
Access to this dashboard requires ESS login credentials
The functional cost model by prefix report consolidates data from the system’s functional cost model by course prefix and includes tabs for revenue, total expense, net impact, and return on investment.
Access to this dashboard requires ESS login credentials
The functional cost model by major report consolidates data from the system’s functional cost model by major and includes tabs for revenue, total expense, net impact, and return on investment.
Access to this dashboard requires ESS login credentials
The DWFI report provides the rate at which students do not receive credit for a course because they did not complete or did not pass the course. The report includes tabs by program, course prefix, course number, course number by semester, and course numbers with the highest rates.
The admissions report displays the admissions funnel by major including completed applications, admits, the admissions rate, deposits, enrollment, and the yield.
The fall student enrollment by minor with breakdowns by percent URM, percent female, and race/ethnicity.
The completions by minor report includes the completions by minor by academic year.
The student to faculty ratio report identifies the ratio of students to faculty based on courses and faculty workload. The report includes tabs for the annual ratio, annual ratio by campus, fall ratio, fall ratio by campus, annual detail, and fall detail.
The annual major data report provide annualized enrollment information by major. The report includes tabs for unique students enrolled, annual FTE, and annual credits.
The First Destination Survey is a career placement survey that CU uses to capture the status and perceptions of its graduates. First Destination data is collected to assist colleges and departments with programmatic reviews and accreditation needs. 2022-23 graduates were the first to be surveyed using a common survey across all campuses.
The Course Enrollment by Major report displays breakdowns of credits and percent of credits generated by major and course prefix. The dashboard includes filters to look at specific academic years, major, courses, semesters, and course levels. Dashboard is best if viewed with filters.
The Section Size report displays the average section size by college, department, and course subject area. Section size is calculated based on the traditional section size methodology which can be found on the Notes tab.
Contact Information
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