State Assessment Meeting
Presentations Abstracts
June 16 & 17, 2016
Orlando, FL
Final presentations will be posted after the meeting.
Applying Behavioral Insights to Improve Student Outcomes: An Iterative Approach to Learning
Josh Martin, Vice President; and Dani Grodsky, Associate, ideas42
What explains student behavior, and what are the implications for schools seeking to assess how well they’re doing at shaping it? Students enroll in college with intention to graduate and do so with manageable or no debt. Yet their actions are often inconsistent with this goal, for example, selecting sub-optimal course loads and loan packages or neglecting other support structures. The behavioral science lens helps to explain these inconsistencies, assess the influence of current structures and suggest design solutions, ranging from small tweaks to entirely new systems. In this talk, we will uncover the interdependence of behavioral science and rigorous evaluation methods and explore the ideas42 methodology through real-world applications in postsecondary education.
Assessing Student Success Initiatives: Hand-on Steps for Using Video Case Studies
Nichole Jackson, Assistant Director, Learning Assessment; and Jenny Lee, Professor,
New Student Experience, Valencia College
This session provides attendees with the opportunity to see why video data
is an efficient and effective tool that may be missing from their current assessments.
Presenters will outline the steps for using video data to capture student perspectives.
Participants will be guided through this process and begin working on their own outline
for how to use video data and how to apply new collaborative review strategies at
their institution. In this interactive session, attendees will watch brief video clips
of student interviews and assess them from different perspectives. In the end, attendees
will leave with a plan for ways to take video from public relations (promoting a program)
to analysis and understanding (being reflective and critically engaging the voices
of students and instructors).
Developing an Online Course Evaluation Model that Results in Response Rates Above 50%
Joe Boyd, Assessment Coordinator, Academic Effectiveness and Assessment; Jamie Ferrazano, Executive Director, Academic Technology; and Maggie Tymms, Assessment Director, Academic Effectiveness and Assessment, St. Petersburg College
St. Petersburg College recently enhanced the electronic delivery method used to administer course evaluations, the Student Survey of Instruction. This topic describes the implementation of a widget and overlay video, displayed during the survey period until the survey is submitted. Although prior improvement methods have been successful, SPC’s recent comprehensive approach has been most effective, resulting in response rates that exceed 50%.
Elevating and Understanding Ethical Reasoning Skills through Undergraduate Research Activities: What We are Learning when We Assess
*Opening Keynote*
Julio Turrens, Ph.D., The Council of Undergraduate Research (CUR)
The phrase “Responsible Conduct of Research” (RCR) encompasses a set of basic rules as well as federal regulations expected to be followed in research. These principles are to be followed not only by scientists and other professionals but also by students involved in undergraduate research experiences. Some of the principles learned during training can be extrapolated to other aspects of academic life, and contribute to making students more mature and aware of their responsibilities. This is particularly important since some college-age students do not have a clear idea of what constitutes academic misconduct.
In this presentation we will discuss: a) the historical background that led to developing training areas in RCR; b) how do we adapt some of these topics to better train undergraduates at our institution; c) how undergraduates perceive the relevance of this training; and d) some current ideas for assessment of RCR training and misconduct among scientists.
Innovations in the Assessment of Learning Specific to Communications: Oral Citations Rubric and a Pre-Post Assessment
April Raneri, Tina Tan, and Liza Schellpfeffer, Professors, Speech, Valencia College
Intensive Workshop on Developing and Assessing Program Learning Outcomes (2hr session)
Wendi Dew, Assistant Vice President, Teaching and Learning; and Laura Blasi, Ph.D., Director, Learning Assessment, Valencia College
Successful program learning outcomes assessment requires partnerships and a plan that can be implemented across programs. Workshop participants will be able to: 1. Write learning outcome statements and performance indicators; 2. Distinguish among program assessment methods and instruments; and 3. Involve colleagues in program assessment planning and implementation. Presenters will discuss the lessons learned over four years of planning at Valencia College. This session is relevant to both faculty members and administrators regardless of their leadership roles.
Next Steps from Florida’s Participation in the Pilot of the Threshold Achievement Test for Information Literacy (TATIL) Aligned with ACRL Frameworks
Diane Dalrymple, Librarian, Valencia College; and Carolyn Radcliff, Information Literacy Librarian for Carrick Enterprises
As one information literacy assessment option, Valencia Libraries participated in the Threshold Achievement Test for Information Literacy (TATIL) pilot designed to measure the competency level of college students regarding the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) threshold concepts. Participants will learn about the Valencia Libraries process and consider through poster posts whether standardized testing is a viable option for their institution.
Revisions to Developmental Education in English: Learning from Outcomes Assessment
Elizabeth Barnes, Professor of English and Chair, Academic Support; and Dana Davidson, Coordinator, Academic Support Center, Daytona State College
In response to legislatively mandated changes to Developmental Education, Daytona State College is providing viable alternatives for students needing academic intervention and support in Introduction to Composition (ENC1101). Students at the College are able to take accelerated 7 ½-week developmental courses in reading (REA0017) and writing (ENC0025) before they take ENC1101. They can also choose the English Studio (ENC0055L), a one-hour per week, contextualized workshop style course. Assessment and accountability measures include a writing evaluation during the first week of class and perceptions of student learning surveys. This session will include insights gathered from the implementation of these options, and we will take a look at what we are learning from and how we are improving our learning outcomes assessment.
Show, Don’t Tell: Ways to Work with Data in Tableau (2hr session)
Derek Noce, Practice Director – Analytics; and Colleagues, DataBrains, Inc.
This session provides data management and analytics best practices, a walk-through of Assessment analytical dashboards, and hands-on Tableau training. Based on our decades of experience, DataBrains will share lessons and recommendations regarding analytics leadership, program structure, data definition, user adoption, data integration, database development, optimized data preparation, and other key insights for analytics. Assessment use cases and common challenges will be discussed, leading to a series of Tableau dashboards which DataBrains has designed in response. Additionally, attendees will have the opportunity for a 30-minute, hands-on training session designed for beginners plus lessons and tips for more advanced Tableau users. DataBrains is a Jacksonville-based data analytics consultancy, and is a preferred alliance partner with Tableau, a leader in data analytics applications. DataBrains sponsors and facilitates Tableau User Groups in Jacksonville, Orlando, and Tampa.
Strategies for Applying Behavioral Economics to Assess and Strengthen Student Support (2hr session)
Josh Martin, Vice President; and Dani Grodsky, Associate, ideas42
Students receive hundreds of communications from their school, starting before their first day of class and continuing throughout and beyond their tenure. Many include critical information about important actions and deadlines but very often do not trigger the desired reactions. As a follow-up to the pre-lunch talk, this workshop will give you tools to use behavioral science to improve the effectiveness of your student-facing communications and, critically, assess whether you’ve been successful in doing so.
The Gen Ed Assessment Journey: Where Pedagogy Meets Accountability
Susan Taylor, Ed.S., Coordinator of Institutional Effectiveness, Research, and Accreditation; and Jennifer Page, Director, Curriculum and Instruction, North Florida Community College
The Cheshire Cat tells Alice that she will get "somewhere" if she walks long enough! Finding the intersection of pedagogy and accountability in the assessment and reporting of student learning outcomes is challenging, especially for those new to assessment. Facilitators share their current professional development strategies and engagement processes, highlighting strengths and weaknesses, encouraging participants to engage in lively and interactive discussions of best practices.
The New Advisor Experience Training Program: Leveraging Collaborative Effort
Ed Holmes, Director of Advising, West Campus; and Evelyn Lora Santos, Director of Advising, East Campus, Valencia College
Leading over 20 staff and faculty in the development, delivery, and assessment of an online mixed-mode advisor training program, the presenters provide a consistent model of collaborative effort across the college when onboarding new advisors and faculty in their roles as academic advisors. The presenters will also discuss ways that Title III Grant made this possible and how campus-specific projects were leveraged into a college-wide effort, supporting Valencia’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).
The “Read to Succeed” QEP: Using Data for Continuous Improvement at Seminole State College
Carissa Baker, Director, Read to Succeed QEP and Professor of English, Seminole State College
Seminole State College’s Quality Enhancement Plan, Read to Succeed, focuses on improving reading comprehension and creating a culture of reading on campus. After three years of conducting this research project, we have learned a lot! This presentation will detail how we assess the QEP and how reviewing the data has led to improvement in our plan. These ideas can be applied to other programs, as the key concept is using data analysis for continuous improvement on course, program, and institutional levels.
To MARS and Beyond – Opening the Gateway! / Math at the Root of Success – IRSC’s QEP
Bobbi Parrino Cook, Ed.D., Director QEP and Professor, Math, Indian River State College
IRSC’s QEP is “Improving Student Learning and Success in Gateway Math.” The plan has grown from one gateway course with two deliveries to two gateway courses with five deliveries. This is an Action Research project with many tweaks and changes. During this session current results of the plan will be shared along with an explanation of the processes, assessments, tweaks, successes, failures and the future.
Using a Peer Review Process to Ensure Quality in Online Learning at Daytona State College
Karla Moore, Ph.D., Dean, Academic Assessment and Planning; and Andrea Gibson, Ph.D., Chair, Online Studies, Daytona State College
This session describes how Daytona State College launched an institutional initiative of online class assessment using a peer review process and incorporated this initiative into the overall institutional effectiveness of the College. A brief overview of the peer review process along with a detailed look at the results and how they affected online class quality and overall improvement of institutional assessment will be presented.
Using AAC&U VALUE Rubrics to Enhance the General Education Assessment Model
Maggie Tymms, Assessment Director, Academic Effectiveness and Assessment; David Monroe, Academic Chair, Applied Ethics Institute; and Erika Johnson-Lewis, Professor, Humanities and Fine Arts, St. Petersburg College
St. Petersburg College recently enhanced its General Education Assessment Model by aligning Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) VALUE Rubrics to institutional general education outcomes. This topic describes the processes of identifying VALUE Rubrics, and alignment to the outcomes’ course assessments and student competencies. The comprehensive assessment model discussed will include ideas for assessing Ethics, Critical Thinking, and Global Socio-Cultural Responsibility.
Using the Case Study Method to Teach and Assess Ethical Reasoning Skills in the Context Undergraduate Research Activities (2hr session)
Julio Turrens, Ph.D., The Council of Undergraduate Research (CUR); and Laura Blasi, Ph.D., Director, Learning Assessment, Valencia College
"Watching Assessment" - A Glance Backward while Looking Towards Tomorrow in a Closing Conversation with Pat Hutchings.
Pat Hutchings, Ph.D., Senior Scholar, National Institutute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA)
Author of the influential article related to this topic (co-authored with Ted Marchese) published in 1990, she will be joining us by Skype to reflect on where we have been, while we discuss where we want assessment to go across Florida’s state colleges. Dr. Hutchings is currently a Senior Scholar at the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) and Consulting Scholar for The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. An electronic copy of the original article from 1990 will be provided in advance.