Assessment…. Misconceptions, Fears, and Realities

August 29, 2007, Nicole Duncan-Kinard and Kathy Harter led a discussion on assessment. What follows are their notes recording that discussion.

Misconceptions

• Assessment is equivalent to grading
• Formative and summative assessments are the same
• Assessment of outcomes infringes on faculty rights

Fears

• Assessment is dictated from beyond vs. faculty ownership of the course and the assessment;
• Assessment is viewed as teacher evaluation instead of a means to help the faculty member to progress;
• Assessment of outcomes will lead to a loss of individuality, faculty freedom of choice and responsibility;
• Assessment outcomes will effect tenure decisions.... Class will be perceived as too easy or too hard;
• Admitting that you “don’t know” something can be threatening to self-image/ego of a faculty member;
• Time for assessment of Student Learning Outcome's (SLO’s) is more time-consuming.....grading an essay-type exam is more extensive than T/F or multiple choice.
  

Realities

• Learning is part of a conversation with our students;
• Instructor’s attitude needs to be that the students understand the info vs. I delivered the info.... a SLO model vs. coverage model;
• The need to ensure consistency across sections regarding “protocols/course goals” [use a Teaching Goals Inventory] does not dictate an instructor’s style;
• Learning/classroom culture can be/should be collaborative vs. competitive;
• Tests can be used a punitive measure (low grade) or as a teaching moment...see what students don’t understand and address it;
• SLO’s can be sequential outcomes...as 101 moves into 102;
• For learning, students need to do the work...be engaged.....they summarize/evaluate the class (such as: muddiest area, one minute paper, what did you learn, what do you wish you learned, etc.)....and their input highlights the problematic areas/concepts for the instructor to address the next class;
• There can be student resistance to active engagement. (Afraid to speak out? Must do extra work such as re-writing a paper/lab report for grammatical errors, etc.) How do we overcome this? (Extra credit? Better grade? Designing a classroom culture that is welcoming; one of sharing)